Green Tears
by anjy93
Summary: When a human enters the underground, they are surrounded by centuries of trapped magic. Those with a strong will, with high levels of determination, may be blessed with a gift. The red soul, the soul of determination, may have saves and time, but another soul could rival that power, if only they would brave the cursed Mount Ebott.
1. Chapter 1

_The underground, a secret world filled with monsters, sealed away from humanity for centuries. Long forgotten by those on the surface, the darkness has silently swallowed all that would brave its doors. Though some have entered, none have returned. Human, monster, it matters not what descends into its depths._

 _Nothing leaves._

* * *

The light gently shines through the windows, filling the Judgement Hall with a gentle golden glow, broken only by the puddles of red splattered across the floor. The silence in the room is broken by the angry huffing of a child as blood drips from their face and arms.

"i told you kid, this is it. reset a 1,000 times, and i'll still be here. you're never going to get past me." The child glares up at the grinning skeleton, standing feet away from them. "Give up." They smile, then start laughing, making him frown.

"What a joke." They quietly say. "Then again, you like making jokes, don't you, Sans?" They start walking forward, holding their knife out to the side. "I AM determination! I don't give up! Kill me 10,000 times, and I'll come back!" They slash at Sans, but he disappears, reappearing 20 feet back. "Come on! I've died so many times already! Whats one more?" They shout as they run at him.

"don't you ever get tired?" Sans questions as he disappears again, avoiding another slash. He reappears behind the child, a blaster at his side. "well, you're gonna die anyways, so its fine if you have a bit of energy left." He holds his left hand out, and a few dozen bones, some white, some blue, appear. "just, hold still for a sec, kay?" As the blaster quickly charges, the bones shoot out at the child. They run at Sans in response, dodging bones as they go.

"I've seen this so many times!" They shout, a vicious smile plastered on their face. Sans feels a chill run down his spine as he watches each of his attacks miss, and his enemy closing the gap between them. He throws his left hand out in front of himself, and the blaster fires. "Keep it coming!" They laugh as they slide under the beam of energy. When it ends they jump back onto their feet and continue running at Sans. Over and over they stab and slash at him, but he dodges time and time again. "You can't keep dodging forever!"

"probably not. i don't need to though." He winks as they suddenly trip over some bones sticking out of the floor. "i just gotta outdo you, and that isn't really hard." They drop to the floor, and a set of bones comes out of it, running then through. "heh..." He lets out a sigh. "wonder how many times this is now that i've killed them. i lost track a while ago." He walks over to their body, but stops. "wait... their soul... where is it?" He questions.

"You idiot." He turns and looks back. Flowey smirks up at Sans. "Chara took that human's soul long ago!"

"what do you know, weed?" Sans asks.

"I know that you're going to lose soon, Smiley Trashbag." Sans opens his mouth to speak. "You don't even know what happened this time." Flowey shakes his head. "Isn't strange that Chara hasn't reset yet?" Sans looks at the empty husk lying on the floor, blood pooled around it, then back at Flowey.

"what did you do?" Sans shouts.

"I, did nothing." Flowey states smugley. "A new piece has entered the game, and it looks even stronger than the last." He glances at the body, and Sans freezes for a moment.

"no... no!" He shouts as he disappears. Sans finds himself in Snowdin, the town silent. He disappears again, this time before a large door. He looks at it, snow piled against the bottom, keeping it shut. His body aches as he looks at the familiar scene, but he continues on. Once more he vanishes, only to reappear on the other side of the door. He looks around, but the only thing he sees is a pile of dust. "i'm sorry lady." He quietly says before continuing on. At first he runs, but he doesn't even make it to the house before exhaustion sets in. "th-they couldn't have reset real quick so i'd have the energy for this?" He questions as he slowly climbs the stairs, up into the empty home. "this is cozy." He pauses for a moment, taking in the warmth of the building, but quickly returns to his quest. He walks out of the home, and continues forward, his movements slowed, but filled with care and caution. With each room he moves a little bit slower. Each corner brings with it a tingling fear. Each completed puzzle, and each pile of dust, brings up images in his mind that he attempts to shake away. "if i had a heart it'd probably be beating right out my bones... heh..." His smile only lasts a moment, as he continues on.

"H-Hello? Anyone there?" Sans stops. "Hello?" The quivering voice is coming from the next room.

"there... really is someone else..." Sans looks up at the ceiling. "papyrus, you'd probably want me to give them a chance, wouldn't you? ...sorry brother. i can't let another human ruin what little is left." He stands there, waiting. Soon, a young girl walks around a corner. She's older than the last, though she looks far more fragile. Her red hair reaches down to the middle of her back, though some covers her face. When she spots Sans she freezes. A look of terror fills her face, and she starts to stumble back. "What's wrong kid? You look a bit rattled." Sans says.

"Y-You... You're... A..."

"a skeleton, yep." He shrugs. "kinda strange having someone react like that after all this time, especially since the last one didn't really seem to feel anything at all."

"H-how are... What... Where..." Tears fill the girl's eyes. Sans sighs.

"look, nothing personal kid, i just don't wanna go through this all again." He holds his left hand out to his side, and his eye begins to glow. A dozen bones appear around him, and the girl drops to her knees, the tears flowing silently from her wide open eyes.

"P-please..." She quietly says. Sans doesn't say anything in response though. He simply throws his hand forward. "No!" The girl shouts. Suddenly, her eyes are directed to something in front of her. She thrusts her hand forward, and a green light shoots out from it. Sans pulls his hand back, and the bones stop.

"wh-what?" He questions. The light spreads out, hitting the couple of dust piles in the room. It also heads for him. He puts his arms up, but when the light hits it envelopes his whole body. Almost as quickly as it came, it vanishes. He looks down at his hands. "what was... that?" He looks at the scared girl as his energy returns. The aches of his body have disappeared. He then looks at where the other lights hit. The dust piles have returned to their original forms, leaving behind a couple of confused Froggits and Whinsum. "what did you do? h-how did you..." He looks back at the girl. She's shaking. "how did you do that?"

"I... I don't know." She says through her sniffles. "I just... Something just popped up in front of me. I... I thought that it said help, so I touched it." She looks at the revived monsters. She slowly holds her hand out. "I-It came back."

"what is it?" Sans glances around.

"It... Its some button... It... Says 'heal'." Sans pauses, then sighs again.

"you're just making things more complicated for me. really." He smiles. "look, kid, sorry about, you know, trying to kill you and all. i think if you knew what i'd just been through, and what i'm worried is about to happen, then you'd understand." He looks back the way he came, then at the girl. "perhaps i should start over. i'm sans, sans the skeleton. this is the underground, where monsters live. well, we're a bit stuck here, or you'd probably have seen us before now." He shrugs. "anyways, what's your name?" He puts his hands in his pockets.

"M-me? I'm... I'm Nyssa..." She puts her hand over her head. "Is... Is this even real? This cant..."

"this is real. trust me, i wish this was a bad dream myself. listen, nyssa, mind showing me that trick of yours again?" Nyssa stands, but she doesn't move. "look, kid, i'm not gonna hurt you if you aren't gonna hurt me, okay?" She still doesn't move. "just, come with me real quick. you could help a lot of people right now."

"Al... Alright." She nods and starts walking, her eyes bouncing from one monster to the next. When she reaches Sans, he leads her into the next room.

"you see that dust piles around here? those are monsters that were killed by the last human to come down here."

"O-oh?" She looks at the dust.

"the last human... they weren't exactly pleasant to have around. i wouldn't have been so quick to attack ya, but they kinda left a sour taste in my mouth when they went and killed all my friends."

"I'm sorry." She looks down.

"it wasn't you who killed them. but you might be able to save them." Nyssa looks at Sans, then again at the dust. She holds her hand out, and after a moment the green light flies out, covering the dust. Sans watches as the forms of the monsters begins to return. Then their color, and finally the light disappears, leaving behind dazed, but otherwise healthy, monsters. Nyssa smiles and looks at Sans, but her smile disappears as she sees the tears falling from Sans's eyes.

"Are... Are you okay?" She quietly asks.

"yeah, i'm fine. i just... i didn't think i'd be able to see any of them again, but..." He chuckles. "sorry, guess i was feeling a bit bonely when everyone died."

"Is... Is that a pun?" Nyssa asks, her face half smiling, half annoyed.

"expect a lot of them." He winks, and she laughs lightly.

"This really is just some messed up dream, isn't it?" She looks at the other monsters, then at Sans again. "A skeleton who thinks he's got some funny bone in him, weird little monsters, and some super power... I really can't believe it."

"believe it, because thats exactly whats going on. also, what do you mean thinks? i'm a pretty humerus guy." She giggles. "right, there are a lot of monsters that need your help, but... i've got someone in particular i need you to start with. come on, i've got a shortcut." He starts walking, and Nyssa follows. Suddenly he finds herself in the snow. She stops and spins around.

"H-How did we get... What..." She looks at Sans.

"it's a shortcut." He continues walking.

"Is that a town?" Nyssa asks as she follows.

"yep. it's empty right now, but once everyone is back, and we know they'll be safe, then hopefully they'll all return home." He walks up to a house and opens the door. "this is my house, in case you get curious."

"Alright. Why are we here though?" Sans grabs a bowl off the table and takes a lid off it. Nyssa sees the dust inside.

"just, use your power." Nyssa nods and holds her hand out. The light reaches from her hand and gently wraps around the dust. As it rises up and takes shape, Sans takes the bowl away. The dust quickly retakes its original form, and once the light disappears, there is a second skeleton standing before Nyssa.

"WHAT... HAPPENED?" Sans instantly hugs him.

"p-papyrus!" He shouts.

"SANS? SANS, WHAT HAPPENED?" Papyrus asks. "THE HUMAN, I THOUGHT..." He looks at Nyssa. "OH, HELLO THERE! WAIT... SANS! THAT IS NOT THE SAME HUMAN! SANS! ANOTHER HUMAN HAS APPEARED!"

"yeah, i know." Sans chuckles. "papyrus, this human is nyssa. she's got a pretty cool power. i thought you'd like her."

"POWER? WHAT SORT OF POWER COULD A HUMAN HAVE? THER AREN'T NEARLY MAGICAL ENOUGH!" Nyssa smiles.

"Uh, I-I can heal people, I guess." She quietly says.

"HEALING? THAT'S AMAZING!" Papyrus shouts. "BUT, SANS, WHERE IS THE OTHER HUMAN? THE ONE WHO... THEY REALLY DID KILL ME, DIDN'T THEY?" Papyrus' cheerful voice becomes quiet. "DID THEY STOP?"

"no... they had to be stopped." Sans says. "but... they shouldn't be a problem anymore bro, don't worry. they won't be getting up again."

"OH... I HAD HOPED THAT THEY WOULD CHANGE." Papyrus sighs. "IT MAKES ME SAD THAT THEY CONTINUED TO HURT OTHERS. BUT... THEIR SOUL. DID..." Sans shakes his head. Nyssa looks between the two of them.

"no. their soul... didn't show up. for some reason its gone. that annoying little weed said something about someone already taking it, but i wasn't really sure what they were talking about."

"I SEE..." Papyrus looks at Nyssa again. "WELL, MS. NYSSA, THANK YOU FOR REVIVING ME, THE GREAT PAPYRUS. I HOPE THAT YOU'LL BE A BETTER FRIEND THAN THE LAST HUMAN."

"Friend?" Nyssa looks at Papyrus in surprise. "Oh, I... I didn't... I mean..." She stutters as she looks off to the side, a slight blush in her cheeks.

"whats wrong? don't you wanna be friends with my bro? he's the coolest monster i know." Sans says.

"I just... This is, almost normal." Nyssa gives them an embarrassed smile. "I... I didn't even think of the possibility of being friends with a couple of skeletons. I'm not sure how I'm dreaming all this up." Sans frowns.

"you really still think this is a dream?" He asks coolly. Nyssa looks at him. "listen, this isn't a dream. we're real, this place is real. stop treating us like some write off nonsense your brain came up with while it was bored during the night." His tone is sharp, causing Papyrus to look at him in surprise.

"AH, SANS, ARE YOU OKAY?"

"no, i'm not okay." Sans lets out a frustrated sigh. "everyone i ever cared about was killed, and i've been close to dying myself. now there's a chance to save everyone, but the person who can save them is another human, and it's one who isn't even willing to accept that we're real, that we actually exist and have lives and cares and fears... it's been a bit of an emotional time for me."

"I-I... I didn't, you know, thats not... It isn't..." Nyssa stumbles over her words as she attempts to form a sentence. Suddenly, Papyrus picks Sans up and hugs him tightly.

"BROTHER, CALM DOWN!" Papyrus cheerful says. "WHATEVER HAS HAPPENED, WE'RE ALL GOING TO BE OKAY. IF THE HUMAN IS HAVING TROUBLES, WE'LL SIMPLY HELP HER TO GET ALONG WITH EVERYONE AND FIT IN." Sans smiles and hugs his brother back.

"right. sorry pap." Nyssa looks down, then back up at the brothers as Papyrus sets Sans back down.

"FOR NOW, I THINK IT'D BE BEST TO MAKE SURE EVERYONE IS OKAY. WHATEVER COMES NEXT, WE'LL BE FINE IF WE'RE ALL TOGETHER." Papyrus looks at Nyssa. "YOU CAN HEAL PEOPLE, YES?"

"Uh, y-yeah, I guess…" Nyssa quietly replies.

"PERFECT!" Papyrus shouts. "WE SHOULD GO CHECK ON ALL OF OUR FRIENDS RIGHT AWAY! COME ON, LETS…"

"bro, you should just relax for a little bit." Sans says, drawing the attention of the others. "there are a lot of monsters that need help. i'll take her around and make sure everyone is taken care of. you… you were just dead, i don't want you running around so soon after being revived."

"SANS, I'M FINE. THE GREAT PAPYRUS CAN'T BE STOPPED BY SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS DEATH!" Papyrus shouts. Nyssa smiles, and so does Sans.

"i know you're strong bro, but… please, for my peace of mind, just stay home and rest, okay?" The two look at each other for a few seconds, then Papyrus sighs.

"ALRIGHT. I'LL STAY HERE FOR NOW. BUT… HURRY HOME, OKAY?" He smiles, and Sans can't help returning the warm gaze.

"don't worry bro. you know me, i too much of a lazy bones to go running around all day. we'll make it quick." Sans then turns and starts walking towards the door. "come on nyssa, i wanna hurry back so i can take a nap. i'm pretty tired out from all the fighting and emotional stuff."

"Uh, A-alright…" She follows him. When he shuts the door, the two start walking through the snowy village, the only sound coming from their footsteps on the snow.

"so, what do you think of my brother?" Sans asks, making Nyssa jump.

"O-oh, he's…" She pauses, and a light smile forms on her lips. "He's very sweet, and he seems fun… I… I didn't expect him to want to be friends so suddenly… Its kinda nice."

"yeah. my bro is pretty cool, and he's always been way too nice to everyone… whatever happens from here on out, i want you to remember one thing." He stops, and so does Nyssa. The two stand in silence for a moment, then Sans turns around, his eyes closed. When he opens them, they're completely black, sending a chill down Nyssa's spine. "i've lost my brother once. it doesn't matter who gets in my way, it won't happen a second time." When he blinks, his eyes return to normal. He turns back around and continues walking. Nyssa doesn't though. She simply stands there, the image of Sans preparing to kill her stuck in her mind. "what's the hold up?" He stops and looks back at her.

"N-nothing." Nyssa quietly says as she starts following him. "Sorry…" Her voice is barely audible. Sans' usual smile disappears for a moment, but he quickly turns away and continues walking. The two then disappear, leaving behind a dead end of footprints.


	2. Chapter 2

As the green light fades from the newly revived monsters, Nyssa's labored breathing can be clearly heard. Sans looks at the monsters, then at her.

"you're looking a bit tired, and we've got a lot of monsters to go still." Nyssa half smiles at him.

"I-I'm okay. I'm just new to this, th-that's all." She takes in a deep breath, then starts walking. "I-I'm sure we're almost done with this place. I-I might need a break, you know, after that…" Sans follows her, and the two continue walking. Sans watches as Nyssa struggles to control her breathing, and she sways back and forth slightly while walking. "A house?" He looks forward at the little home in front of them.

"didn't realize we were already at the end. there's one more monster here that needs your help. come on." They walk into the home, and Nyssa stops. Sans continues on though, heading down the stairs. She takes in another deep breath, then follows after him. She leans on the handrails as she slowly walks down the steps. Sans glances back at her. "if you're so worn out, couldn't you just heal yourself?"

"I didn't think about that." Nyssa says as she holds her hand up. When the light comes out, it envelopes her. Some scrapes on her arms and face disappear with the light. "N-No, I don't think it helped much." She holds her hand up. "I… I guess it doesn't work the same on, on me."

"too bad. it helped me when you got me before. guess it makes sense though. if you didn't have to pay some sort of price for your power then that'd just be unfair." He shrugs. They reach the bottom of the stairs, and begin their trek through the dark tunnel. The echo of their footsteps is overshadowed by Nyssa's breathing. They continue on, until they reach the door at the end. "this is it. the dust here should be that of a friend of mine. well, I haven't really seen her before, but i've spent loads of time talking with her through the door, telling some amazing bad jokes." He chuckles, but then sighs, his eyes empty.

"Alright." Nyssa holds her hand out.

"you know, it's kinda weird that you've got some sort of button." Sans says as he watches the light shoot out. "never heard of someone having to use a button for their power before."

"Maybe it's because I wasn't born with it." Nyssa suggests as her hand drops to her side. "I… Don't know how I'd use it otherwise." Sans shrugs as he watches the dust rise up and form itself back into its original state. When the light disappears, standing before them is Toriel. Her eyes flutter for a second.

"O-oh my… What… How…" She looks at the two standing before her. "What happened? I thought that the child had… Who…"

"a lots happened recently. we've got more work to do, but i'll see about stopping by and slipping it in amongst the knock-knock jokes." Sans says with a wink, though he isn't looking at her.

"Knock… Oh! Oh, you're…" She smiles at Sans. "Oh my, this is a bit overwhelming and confusing, but still, it's nice to get to actually see you. I must say, all the skeleton puns make much more sense now."

"heh, they are a bit better once you realize i'm actually a skeleton. anyways, you should get some rest. this human has an ability that heals, and it can revive monsters, so i'm taking her around to help everyone that was hurt by that kid." Toriel's smile disappears.

"Oh…" Her eyes focus on Nyssa, who simply gives Toriel a weak smile. "What is your name, child?"

"My name is Nyssa." She quietly replies.

"My, you sound so tired." Toriel frowns.

"I am a bit, but I'll be okay, probably." She glances at Sans. "If I can help… I'd like to do that. What I'm dealing with should be fixed by a good night's sleep."

"Well, I… I think, after whats happened, I might… I may go out and see how the others are doing. Perhaps I'll visit you as well, and ensure you're doing well."

"Thank you. You really don't need to though. I…" Nyssa pauses. "I… Haven't even… thought about… where I'll stay, or… Whatever. It doesn't matter right now." She smiles up at Toriel. "Like Sans said, you should probably rest. I'm sure we'll meet again soon enough, and we can talk then. I'm told that there are a lot of others who need me right now, so we should get going."

"Alright. Thank you, my child." She looks to Sans. "And to you as well… Um, Sans, why is it you've been avoiding looking at me?" Sans blushes as he looks up at the ceiling.

"well, uh, that is, even though nyssa can revive monsters, reviving them has nothing to do with their clothing…" He trails off as Toriel looks down.

"O-Oh my!" She blushes. Nyssa giggles.

"Sans is the only one I've seen wearing clothes, so it didn't even occur to me that you might normally wear them. Sorry." Nyssa says.

"W-Well, I-I think I'll return to my home to, um, get dressed." Toriel stutters. She then speedily walks past them both, heading back down the tunnel.

"we, uh, should probably keep going." Sans says as he scratches his face.

"Right…" The two walk out of the door, and into the snow. As they walk, Nyssa looks at Sans. "How did you know she wears clothes normally? It sounded like you two haven't seen each other before."

"i saw her clothes on the floor. when it was papyrus it didn't really bother me too much. he's my brother. i've seen him before as we've grown up, especially since i had to help take care of him. but, you know, someone who isn't family, and especially a lady, that's a bit more, well, awkward." Nyssa laughs lightly, until she stumbles and falls face-first into the snow. "hey! kid!" Sans stops and kneels next to her. He grabs her shoulder and shakes it, but she doesn't respond. He then rolls her over. Her eyes are shut, and her breathing is ragged. "don't tell me you're done already." He sighs. "whatever. it's for the others, so i'll deal with this." He stands, and the two disappear.

* * *

 _"_ _So, healing? I wonder if I'd have both with you... I wanna see… Come on now, you want to really live, don't you? That's why you have power… Power, like me. You can't live like this though… No… Living for us, that requires fighting... Come on then, get up. Fight. I'll be right at your side. You're stronger than the last one. You're better… You and I can push past that worthless bag of bones. Don't fight me. You don't want to fight me… Get up, Nyssa, happiness is only a stab away."_

* * *

Nyssa opens her eyes. Above her is a plain ceiling. She slowly sits up, and finds she's lying in a bed, with a blanket thrown on top of her. In front of her is a tornado, making her heart stop a moment, before she realizes that it isn't moving from its spot in the corner of the room.

"Where… Is this?" She looks at the rest of the room. It's mostly empty, and what is in the room is nothing but a couple of messy piles of socks, and a treadmill. She turns and lets her feet touch the floor, then carefully stands. Her legs shake a moment, but she's able to start walking. She heads to the door and grabs for the handle, but suddenly the door opens. Standing in front of her is Papyrus, dressed in pants and a sweatshirt.

"OH, HUMAN, YOU'RE AWAKE! I THOUGHT I HEARD SOMETHING MOVING UP HERE!" He smiles at her. "I WAS QUITE WORRIED WHEN MY BROTHER RETURNED AND SAID YOU HAD PASSED OUT, BUT IT SEEMS YOU JUST NEEDED SOME REST. YOU'RE LOOKING MUCH BETTER. YOU KNOW, NOT BARELY BREATHING AND SWEATING BADLY." Nyssa half smiles.

"Thanks, I guess…" She glances past him. "I, uh…" She looks down, then back up at him. "This… Really is real, right?" He sighs, but his smile doesn't disappear.

"YES." He puts a hand on her shoulder. "THIS ALL MUST BE DIFFERENT, AND SCARY. TO BE HONEST, I DIDN'T THINK ABOUT THIS BEFORE, BUT SANS AND I HAVE BEEN TALKING WHILE YOU'VE BEEN RESTING, AND I THINK I UNDERSTAND A BIT BETTER. PLEASE, KNOW THAT WE WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU LIKE ONE OF OUR OWN, ESPECIALLY SINCE YOU'RE DOING SO MUCH FOR US." Nyssa sighs, but her smile afterwards is genuine.

"Thank you… I… I'm not sure about what's happened. Everything is so strange. I mean, I knew about the dangers of climbing the mountain, but…" She trails off.

"WELL, IT SEEMS LIKE YOU'READJUSTING QUITE WELL. OF COURSE, IT WON'T BE AN INSTANT THING, BUT I AM A PATIENT SKELETON. JUST YOU WAIT AND SEE! WE'LL BE THE BEST OF FRIENDS!" Nyssa laughs.

"Papyrus… I think you're the quickest friend I've ever made." She shakes her head. "Ah, I hate to, you know, ruin the moment, but… Do… Do you have anything to eat?" She smiles sheepishly, a slight blush in her cheeks.

"BUT OF COURSE! I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM AN EXCELLENT COOK! YOU'RE LUCKY! NO HUMAN HAS EVER BEFORE BEEN ABLE TO TASTE MY FAMOUS SPAGETTI!" He grabs her hand, and then runs for the stairs. Nyssa stumbles at first, but she quickly regains her balance and allows herself to be dragged down the stairs. "I WAS JUST COOKING UP SOMETHING TO EAT, SO YOUR TIMING IS PERFECT! SANS HAS BEEN SPENDING A LOT OF HIS TIME OUTSIDE DURING THE LAST FEW DAYS, BUT HE SHOULD BE COMING BACK HOME SOON!"

"Wait, days?" She questions as Papyrus lets go of her hand. He continues on into the kitchen, but she simply stands in the doorway.

"YES. YOU'VE BEEN ASLEEP FOR ABOUT FOUR DAYS. IT'S NOT UNLIKE MOST MONSTERS WHEN THEY TAP INTO THE FULL POTENTIAL OF THEIR POWER FOR THE FIRST TIME. IT OFTEN OVERWHELMS THE BODY AND THE SOUL." Papyrus stirs a pot. "I'M SURE YOU'LL ADJUST QUICKLY, ESPECIALLY IF YOU REALLY DO HAVE SO MANY MONSTERS TO HEAL." Nyssa looks down at her hands. Her button pops up in front of her, and she looks at Papyrus. "SUCH A SHAME MY BODY ARMOR WAS RUINED. SANS SAID WE MIGHT MAKE SOMETHING NEW, BUT FOR NOW I THINK I'LL RETURN TO MY OLD CLOTHES." She reaches out and touches the button. The light shoots out and wraps itself around Papyrus. He drops his spoon as the green glow engulfs him. When it vanishes he looks at Nyssa. "THAT WAS YOU, WASN'T IT?" She nods. "THAT WAS AMAZING!"

"You think so?" She smiles.

"MOST DEFINITELY! I FEEL COMPLETELY REFRESHED! IT'S QUITE AMAZING!" He grabs his spoon and returns to his work. Nyssa looks down at her hands again.

"Thank you… I, um, I think I'll go outside a minute. I kinda need to stretch. How long until the food is ready?" She looks up at Papyrus as her hands drop to her side.

"IT WILL ONLY BE A FEW MINUTES, SO DON'T WANDER TOO FAR. I DON'T WANT YOU GETTING LOST, AND ESPECIALLY NOT OUT IN THE SNOW. YOU CERTAINLY AREN'T DRESSED TO BE OUT THERE FOR LONG."

"Right. Thanks." She turns and heads for the front door. When she opens it she's hit by the cold. "Didn't… Didn't really notice it so bad before." She mumbles as she walks outside, closing the door behind herself. She steps out into the snow, and almost right away she feels some of it fly into her shoes, making her shake her feet a couple of times before continuing. She walks slowly as she heads towards the town. It's still quiet, but she sees lights are on in a couple of buildings. She stops in front of one building and looks up at the sign. "Grillby's?" She walks up and opens the door. Inside she sees one person, behind the counter. She pauses as she watches the flames of the man's head flicker while he cleans a set of glasses. He looks at her. "Ah, uh, s-sorry." She half smiles. "I just… I saw lights and thought I'd see if there were people around…"

"…You're the one Sans mentioned, aren't you?" He hesitates, but then motions for her to come closer. She does, and the door shuts behind her. "My name is Grillby. When the last human began attacking everyone, I helped gather the citizens and fled with them to the city. To think that another human would be the reason I could return to my home… Thank you for this." Nyssa stops when she reaches the counter.

"Please, I… I'm not doing much." Nyssa half smiles. "I mean, what else am I supposed to do with this power of mine?"

"Well, I'd suggest you take your compliments where you can get them." Nyssa's smile disappears. "I don't want to bring your mood down, but… A human almost destroyed everything for us… You should expect that not all monsters will be so accepting of you, even if you are their savior." Nyssa looks down. "You understand, don't you?"

"I do." She smiles sadly up at him. "I… Thank you, really. I appreciate you being so nice to me."

"I'm simply informing a young girl about things she deserves to know." He finishes cleaning his last glass and sets it on a stack with the others. "I'm not open again yet, but when I am, I'll treat you to a nice meal, for giving us back our lives."

"Ah, y-you don't have to…" He waves her words away.

"I've seen a lot and heard a lot with this job, and I've learned to show my gratitude when it's deserved. You may not see it as much, but you're literally saving lives. That is a gift we can never truly repay you for. A meal is the least I can do." Nyssa sighs.

"Thank you, Grillby. I'll let you get back to work then. It was nice to meet you."

"You as well." She walks out of the building and returns to her trek.

"exploring?" She jumps and spins around to see Sans.

"Uh, yeah." She half smiles. "Papyrus said he was making something to eat, so I wanted to stretch my legs while he finished…" She looks down. "It's… Still quiet here. Its not normally that way, is it?" Sans looks at Grillby's, then back at Nyssa.

"it's not all that noisy, but no, it's not this quiet either. news spreads quickly though, and most of the monsters plan on returning here. of course, some of our people can't return without you." Nyssa looks down. "well, lets head back. if papyrus is cooking then he'll be very upset if we don't go and eat. he loves his spaghetti." He turns and starts walking back towards his home. Nyssa follows.

"Sans… uh… W-where have you been anyways?" She quickly asks.

"where? i've been out collecting everyone's dust. thought it'd be easier if i got them all together for you." He shrugs.

"Alright." Sans glances back at her.

"that wasn't what you actually wanted to ask me, was it?" Nyssa looks off to the side.

"D-don't worry about it. I… It's nothing important. Let's just eat so we can help everyone." She fakes a smile. Sans glances at her again.

"if you say so…"


	3. Chapter 3

Sans shuts his door and walks towards the stairs, a long sigh escaping from him. When he reaches the bottom floor he walks to the couch, then falls down onto it. He looks up at the ceiling for a few moments, then shuts his eyes.

"SANS, HOW IS NYSSA DOING?" Sans looks at Papyrus as he walks out of the kitchen.

"oh, you know, fast asleep. we got everyone from around here and waterfall revived, but after that she was out." Sans sits up, allowing Papyrus to sit next to him.

"HOW IS EVERYONE DOING? DO THEY SEEM OKAY?" Sans shrugs.

"they're all a bit confused, but they'll be fine." He looks at the tv, then back at Papyrus. "hey, pap, what do you think of the human?"

"SHE SEEMS QUITE NICE, THOUGH SHE'S VERY SHY. SHE CERTAINLY NEEDS SOME TIME TO ADJUST TO LIVING DOWN HERE, BUT… I BELIEVE SHE'LL MAKE AN EXCELLENT FRIEND." Sans looks away.

"i see… well, i've got a few things to take care of before she wakes up again. she'll be healing all of hotland next, and i still haven't got all the dust from there together."

"WHEN YOU'VE BEEN OUT YOU'VE BEEN COLLECTING DUST?" Sans nods.

"yeah. thought it'd be easier on everyone if i spent the time to get all the dust together. that way, when she wakes up, we don't have to waste time and energy running around and looking for everyone. i went back to the ruins and double checked them too, but it looks like we really did get everyone from there."

"WELL, THAT'S GOOD. IT'LL BE NICE TO HAVE EVERYONE ALIVE AND HAPPY." For a few moments the two sit in silence. "SANS… I… I'LL ADMIT, WHILE I LIKE NYSSA, IN THE BACK OF MY MIND, I CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL A LITTLE BIT NERVOUS. NOT SCARED OF COURSE! NEVER SCARED! BUT…" He trails off as he looks to the side. Sans smiles.

"pap, its okay. what happened was a scary thing... well, i think i should go do my work now. the sooner it gets done, the sooner i can sleep." Sans stands and puts his hands in his jacket pockets. "i'll be back in a little bit. keep an eye on her for me." He starts walking towards the door.

"ALRIGHT. BE SAFE OUT THERE. IT'S ALREADY QUITE LATE, SO COME BACK SOON." Sans walks outside, and he can see a few monsters standing by the tree, chatting quietly. He half smiles as he turns and starts walking towards Hotland. A flash of yellow makes him stop. He looks towards some trees, but there's nothing there. He waits a moment, then disappears.

* * *

"Sans, are you sure this is okay?" Sans looks from the platform filled with piles of dust, to Alphys. She's standing off to the side, looking between him and the collected departed.

"what do you mean? it's a great idea. when nyssa wakes up again she'll probably scarf down some of papyrus' spaghetti, walk around for a minute, then i'll bring her here to revive everyone. as long as no one disturbs the dust here, we should be fine." He yawns.

"I mean… That human. Can… C-can she really, you know, be… trusted?" Alphys looks down. "I know she's… I mean, she's been reviving monsters, but… I don't know. It's hard…"

"we were all hurt by a human, one we had hoped, at least a little bit, we could trust, or even befriend." Sans looks at the dust. "i understand your concern. trust me, i do… but, for now, this is our only choice. for now, just keep watch over everyone here. make sure no one disturbs them, got it?" He looks at Alphys, and she nods.

"Y-yeah. Undyne, she, uh, she said she'd come to the lab for a few days, and… and we're gonna watch over everyone, together…" She's blushing. Sans starts walking away from the dust.

"alright. i'll leave it to you then. chances are, the kid won't be waking up for a couple of days, but when she does i'll shoot you a text or something. for now, it's late, and i'd really like to get some sleep after spending all day out of the house. see ya." With that, Sans disappears. Once again, he finds himself standing outside of his house. He opens the door, and finds Papyrus is asleep on the couch. He sighs, but smiles. His eye glows, and with a slight raising of his hand, Papyrus is lifted off the couch. He leads the floating skeleton upstairs, and drops him off in his own bed. His eye stops glowing, as he starts tucking Papyrus in. Sans then walks back out, and over to his own bedroom. He peaks in, and sees Nyssa is still passed out on his bed. A blanket is pulled over her. "pap…" He shakes his head as he closes the door. He then heads back downstairs and falls onto the couch, face first. His eyes shut, and he drifts off to sleep.

* * *

Nyssa's eyes flutter open. Once again she's greeted by the plain ceiling. After a few moments she sits up, a yawn escaping from her lips. She gets out of bed, stretches, then walks towards the door.

"I wonder how long I was out this time." She mumbles. "Also, why do they always leave the light on in here? She stops at the door and turns off the light, turning the room pitch black. "Oh…" She turns the light back on, then walks out. The lights are down in the house. She walks to the railing and sees Sans asleep on the couch downstairs, a blanket draped over him. She walks to the stairs and carefully goes down the stairs. When she reaches the bottom floor she sneaks over to the kitchen and turns the light on. She glances back at Sans, but he hasn't woken up. She walks to the fridge and sees the collection of spaghetti, which makes her smile. "I guess they really like spaghetti." She pulls out some spaghetti and closes the fridge. She then checks drawers until she finds a fork. She then leans on the counter, eating the cold spaghetti.

"not many people enjoy my brother's spaghetti so much." Nyssa jumps and swallows the food in her mouth. Some of it goes down wrong, and she starts coughing as she looks to see Sans standing in the doorway, the blanket wrapped around him.

"W-well, it's not the best spaghetti, but when you're starving it tastes pretty amazing." She says through her coughs. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up."

"well, that's fine. you've been out for a few days again, so i've had plenty of time to catch up on my sleep." His eyes are closed, and he's swaying slightly back and forth.

"You… still look…" Nyssa bites her lip as she smiles. "Uh, d-don't fa…" She's cut off as Sans falls, to the left, into the wall of the doorway. "Ah! Uh…" She simply looks at Sans, stunned. "Y-You… Are you okay?" She asks.

"yeah erm fnn…" Sans mumbles. Nyssa smiles again as she holds her hand out. Sans opens his eyes as the green light wraps around him. He stands upright, and watches as the glow simply fades away. "uh, th-thanks." He looks away and scratches his face.

"No problem." Nyssa returns to eating her spaghetti. "I really need to thank Papyrus. This spaghetti is really hitting the spot." She says as she finishes the plate.

"you sure wolfed that down." Nyssa blushes.

"I-I was hungry. A-anyways, what's, uh, what's the plan now? There are more monsters, right?"

"yeah. there's another group of monsters, but that should be the last of them." He walks to the couch and tosses the blanket on it, then grabs his jacket off the back of it. Nyssa follows and watches as Sans puts his jacket on. "you ready for this?" He asks as he turns back to her.

"Yeah… I-I think I am." Nyssa looks down, but quickly looks back at Sans. "Lets go save them." She says with a gentle smile, making Sans blush. He looks away.

"right…" The two disappear. Nyssa feels shocked when she finds herself standing on the dust platform in Hotland.

"B-bit warm here." She says as she runs her fingers through her hair.

"well, its called hotland for a reason." Sans says. "this should be all the monsters in hotland who were killed. the human didn't get past here, so we should be fine…" Sans trails off as he looks out at the dust. Nyssa follows his line of sight.

"Wh-whats with the metal?" She quietly asks.

"dunno. i didn't put it there. doesn't matter though. go ahead and do your thing." Nyssa nods. She holds her hand out, and the light shoots out, hitting each pile of dust, as well as the destroyed metal. When the light stops, Nyssa starts shaking, and her breathing becomes labored.

"S-Sans, its working." She quietly says, a tired smile on her face. "I… I got them all, at once, and, I…" Suddenly all she sees is emptiness. She stumbles back, then spins around. Sans has his eyes closed. "Wh… What happened? W-where did we g-go? Sans?" She stutters.

"sorry kid… nothing personal, okay?" He opens his eyes. Once is blank, while the other is blue. "i just… can't take that risk again. thanks for saving us… but it's time to end this, once and for all."

"S… Sans?" Nyssa feels tears slide down her eyes as she watches bones appear behind sans. Her whole body shakes. "N-no! Sans, please, I…" Sans throws his hand forward, and the bones fly at Nyssa. She's frozen, her eyes wide, tears sliding down her cheeks. "S-Sans!" She shouts. Sans lowers his head as the bones hit their target. The smell of blood quickly reaches him.

"i'm sorry… but this is for the sake of everyone…" He quietly says. For a moment there is no sound. Then, a quiet cracking. Sans looks up and sees the lifeless eyes of Nyssa staring at him. The bones that pierced her body fall out and disappear, leaving bloody holes behind. "she's standing… that's…" Sans feels sick as he looks at Nyssa. Then, a green light appears in front of her, shocking him. It quickly spreads and wraps itself around her. "no!" He shouts, but the light doesn't stop. Sans watches as the holes in Nyssa's chest and abdomen seal themselves, until there's no sign that she was ever injured, aside from the destroyed shirt and blood. The life returns to Nyssa's eyes, and she drops to her knees, coughing up blood. As she sits there, on her hands and knees, her body shakes.

"I'm… a-alive…?" She looks up at Sans, then she drops to the ground, passed out. Sans simply stands there, looking down at her, his eyes empty.


	4. Chapter 4

_"_ _How sad. You started to like him, didn't you? Pathetic. Are you so desperate for attention that you'd rely on some strange creature you just met? I told you before, this isn't living. He'll kill you again… and again… and again… until one day your body doesn't recover. Don't you see it? Don't you want to be happy? To leave? If you want to truly be happy, just… kill… them…"_

* * *

Nyssa sits up, her breathing heavy, her body sweaty. She wraps her arms around herself as tears form in her eyes. She pulls her legs up to her chest and wraps her arms around them, resting her forehead on her knees.

"I'm… Alive…How…He…" She looks down at her body. She's still wearing her jeans, but her shirt has been replaced by a white t-shirt. "Ah, this…" She pulls on the shirt. "It doesn't fit at all." She half smiles, then she blushes. "W-wait, who ch-changed my shirt?" She looks around the room, and her heart stops when she sees Sans, sleeping in the corner. She begins to shake as she slowly slips out of the bed. She tip-toes to the door, then slowly opens it, constantly glancing back at Sans. She slips out of the room, and then runs to the stairs.

"SANS, ARE YOU FINALLY AWAKE? I TOLD YOU THAT YOU'D FALL ASLEEP IF YOU JUST SAT AND WATCHED OVER A SLEEPING PERSON." Nyssa stops for a moment, but then continues, walking, slowly, down the stairs.

"No, its me. Sans is… Sleeping." Nyssa replies.

"NYSSA? YOU'RE AWAKE?" Papyrus peaks out of the kitchen as she reaches the bottom of the stairs. "YOU ARE! I'M SO GLAD!" He walks out of the kitchen. "I WILL HAVE TO ADD MORE FOOD TO MY BREAKFAST. I WAS JUST MAKING SOMETHING FOR SANS AND I, BUT I'LL HAPPILY MAKE YOU SOMETHING AS WELL."

"Ah, th-thank you." Nyssa smiles nervously.

"I WAS CERTAINLY CONCERNED WHEN SANS CAME HOME AND SAID YOU WERE SO WORN OUT BY HEALING SO MANY MONSTERS THAT I WASN'T ALLOWED TO SEE YOU. NORMALLY I'M THE ONE WHO CHECKS IN AND CARES FOR YOU, BUT HE INSISTED THAT HE CARE FOR YOU UNTIL YOU WOKE UP. I'LL ADMIT, I CAN BE A BIT… LOUD, SO I AGREED… WHY ARE YOU WEARING ONE OF SANS' SHIRTS?"

"Uh, I… Don't know…" She looks down. The shirt is very loose, but it doesn't reach down past her hips. "I'm more concerned as to how I got into it."

"WELL, MY BROTHER MUST HAVE CHANGED YOU IF YOU DIDN'T CHANGE YOURSELF. HOWEVER, HE'S VERY RESPONSIBLE, SO DO NOT WORRY." Nyssa's face turns bright red.

"He… He would have…" She wraps her arms around her chest.

"don't act like i did something wrong. your shirt needed to be changed." Nyssa jumps and looks up to see Sans, leaning on the handrail above. Her blush becomes worse. "look, we should, uh, probably talk, alright?" Nyssa glares at him as she takes a step away. Papyrus looks between the two of them.

"IS SOMETHING THE MATTER?"

"nah bro. we just need to figure some stuff out, that's all."

"WELL, HAVE SOME BREAKFAST BEFORE YOU GO. IF YOU TWO HAVE TO RUN THEN YOU CAN ENJOY MY LOVELY MORNING SPAGHETTI NOW AND I'LL GET STARTED ON MAKING SOME MORE FOR MYSELF." Nyssa opens her mouth to protest, but her stomach growls.

"i'm not really hungry bro. just give nyssa something and i'll eat later." Sans walks to the stairs, and Nyssa runs to the kitchen, hiding behind Papyrus. He looks down at her.

"YOU SEEM A BIT DISTURBED BY SOMETHING. WHAT'S WRONG?" Nyssa glances up at him.

"Its… Nothing." She mutters. Papyrus grabs a plate and puts some spaghetti on it.

"WELL, HERE YOU GO THEN. MY MORNING SPAGHETTI! ENJOY!" Nyssa takes the plate and looks at the food. She smiles.

"Right… Thank you." She quietly says. She grabs a fork off the counter and starts eating the spaghetti. Papyrus proudly puffs his chest out as she eats.

"YOU'RE QUITE HUNGRY THIS MORNING! YOU'RE HARDLY TAKING THE TIME TO PROPERLY ENJOY MY DELICIOUS SPAGHETTI." Nyssa nods as she fills her mouth with spaghetti. Papyrus fills another plate with the rest of the spaghetti, then begins eating as well. When Nyssa finishes she sets the plate on the counter. She sees Sans standing in the doorway, leaning against it. His hood pulled over his head.

"if you're done then lets go for a walk." He says. Nyssa hesitates, but then sighs and follows. "we'll be back in a little while, pap." He turns and heads towards the front door. Nyssa glances at Papyrus then follows after Sans. He walks away from the town, away from others, until finally the two are completely alone, surrounded only by snow and trees. Sans stops and turns around, looking Nyssa in the eye. She has her arms crossed, covering her chest. She's shivering. "so… i'm guessing you remember what happened, since you haven't stopped glaring at me."

"Of course I remember! How could I forget you killing me?" Nyssa snaps.

"look, i did it for a good reason. its not like i'm not grateful to you, but you didn't go through what i did. i just… i didn't want to lose anyone again because a human got bored…"

"Did you really think I'd do anything to hurt anyone? How could I? I can't fight!" Nyssa feels the tears in her eyes. They sting as they roll down her chilled cheeks. "You just waiting for me to save everyone, then you killed me! Do you hate me that much? What did I ever do to make you do that?"

"calm down. seriously, it wasn't because i hate you. i… humans are much stronger than us monsters. you don't know about these differences, and you don't understand the hell we just went through because of a human. i'm trying to protect everyone."

"Well so much for that. Apparently I can't be killed, I…" Nyssa bites her top lip and looks away. "I…" She glares at Sans again. "And why did you change my shirt? What the heck?" Sans looks surprised. He smiles, then chuckles.

"heh… you… you seem to be over the whole killing thing pretty quickly. listen, when i attacked you, obviously your clothes were a bit damaged. i didn't really have any shirts your size, so i just put one of my shirts on you, and yours just slipped off your arms. i didn't see anything, don't worry." Nyssa looks down at the snowy ground, then looks back at Sans, gritting her teeth.

"I… I was so afraid. I felt the bones run through me. I…" She sniffles. "You keep saying to protect everyone, but from what? Am I that much of a threat? I couldn't hurt anyone. I'm too weak. I don't have the stomach for something like that." Her voice becomes quiet. "I don't understand… I… I thought… We… I thought we could be…" Sans looks away.

"uh… look, maybe… it'll be a pain, and i really don't wanna, but it might help if i explained things from the start, including with just what us monsters are and our history with humans, since you don't seem to know." Nyssa continues to shiver as she looks down, then back at Sans.

"Fine. Just… C-can we go somewhere, you know, warm?" Sans looks at her, then smiles.

"what's wrong? you look chilled to the bone." Nyssa glares at him. "no need to act so cold. i snow you're upset, but i promise i won't flake out on explaining things."

"I hate you." Nyssa mumbles, though she has to bite her lip to keep from smiling. Sans walks over to her and takes his jacket off. When he wraps it around Nyssa she blushes and looks at him in surprise.

"look, why don't we go to grillby's? he just opened up again, and i think it'd be a good place to talk. it's definitely warmer than here." Nyssa grabs the jacket and holds it tightly over herself.

"Okay… I… I think that'd be good. Just… Promise not to try to kill me again, okay?" She half smiles. "It really, really hurts."

"i don't really make promises. the last one i made i had to break. but, i guess, for you, i can promise that i won't just randomly kill you again. sound good?" Nyssa sighs.

"I guess… If that's the best I can get. Not like there's much I can do about it anyways." The two walk back towards the town. "By the way, I… I think I'm gonna need some better clothes. You know, ones that fit me would be nice."

"heh. i'm sure papyrus and i can get you something."

"Thank you…" Nyssa pulls the jacket a little tighter around herself.


	5. Chapter 5

Nyssa laughs as Papyrus flexes next to his snowman.

"IT IS AN EXCELLENT LIKENESS OF MY GREAT SELF, IS IT NOT?"

"Oh, it's perfect." Nyssa giggles as she pulls her hands into her white sweater sleeves. "You make the best snowmen."

"OF COURSE! THERE IS NOTHING THE GREAT PAPYRUS CAN NOT MASTER, INCLUDING THE ART OF MODELING SNOW! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus laughs, and Nyssa laughs louder.

"you two really are going to town. how many snowmen is this?" The two look at Sans as he walks up to them. They then look at the small army of snowmen behind them, all but two looking like Papyrus, while two are simple, round snowmen.

"A lot." Nyssa says with a laugh.

"you've sure been having fun this last week. must be because pap has been keeping you company."

"SANS, YOU FLATTER ME! AND WELL DESERVED! CERTAINLY, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE BEEN AN EXCELLENT FRIEND TO NYSSA, AND THE TWO OF US HAVE BEEN ENJOYING MANY PUZZLES AND JAPES TOGETHER. SHE EVEN DOES THE JUNIOR JUMBLE WITH ME."

"that's cool bro. hey, mind if i borrow her for a bit?"

"NOT AT ALL. I'M MEANT TO GO SEE UNDYNE SOON ANYWAYS. SHE DECIDED SHE WANTED TO CONTINUE OUR TRAINING AS SOON AS POSSIBLE."

"sounds like fun. don't go too crazy now." He looks at Nyssa, then turns and starts walking.

"I'll see you back at home." Nyssa waves to Papyrus, then follows after Sans. The two walk together, back towards town. "Did you need to talk or something?" She asks.

"not really. but i knew pap needed to go, and he was having too much fun to remember on his own." He says with a smile. "tell me, after spending a week living with us, and meeting the monsters here, what do you think?" He looks at Nyssa.

"What do you mean?" She looks at him with a puzzled expression. "I've been having a lot of fun. I mean…" She looks down. "Not… Not everyone has been so happy to have me around, but most of the monsters have been really kind, especially after everything you told me happened..." She smiles. "I… Haven't been this happy in a long time."

"you haven't?" He questions. Nyssa freezes a moment, then she smiles nervously at Sans.

"Y-you know! It's, uh…" She looks away and scratches at her face. "N-never mind. Ignore me." Sans stops, and Nyssa does to. He looks at her, but she looks away.

"say, i haven't asked yet, but i can't help but wonder… why did you come here?" Nyssa doesn't respond. The two stand in silence. "look, if you don't wanna say, well, it's not like i can make you." He shrugs, then starts walking again.

"Sorry." Nyssa whispers as she follows behind him. She looks up, at Sans' back, then looks down again. "Sans… everyone down here, they seem really nice, even if they don't all like me… I… I'm not really used to that." Sans stops and looks at Nyssa. She holds her left arm and looks off to the side. "I mean… I'm… I'm used to the being hated part." She gives Sans a tired smile. "I… I wasn't well before. I didn't have a good life, and I… I didn't really…" She looks down again. "Of course, I knew the rumors. Every kid is told the story of the cursed mountain that swallows people and never returns them. Some brave or foolish kids have gone to it in the past, and they never came back. I…" She looks up at him again, with her tired smile. "I was desperately hoping the rumors were true, and that I could disappear by climbing the mountain." Sans doesn't say anything, he simply looks at Nyssa. "Look, i-it doesn't matter now." She attempts to smile properly at him. "I-it's different here. I…" She looks down, tears in her eyes.

"hey, you know, life can be pretty tough." She looks up at him. Sans shrugs, then smiles at her. "its not like life down here is easy. really, we all want to get out of here, and get to the surface. so… it's not like i can't understand wanting to escape your problems." He looks up. "but, you know, there comes a point where you gotta realize that you can't just run away. trouble will always find you, no matter where you are, or who you're with." He looks at her again. "from here on out, you have to stand firm. running… it won't do you any good anymore. trust me." Nyssa smiles.

"Right… Thank you." Sans turns and starts walking again.

"you've been a good friend to my brother, and you've been kind to all the monsters you meet. i can at least give you a little advice." Nyssa follows him. Once again the two are quiet.

"Say, Sans…"

"what's up?" He glances back at her. She looks at him, then looks up.

"Do… do you think I'll really be able to live happily with everyone, someday?" She looks at him, but he doesn't look back at her.

"that's a tough question. i'm not really the type to assume what others think or feel, but it does look like you'll be fine here. even if it takes time, most monsters seem to be warming up to ya." Nyssa lets out a quiet sigh.

"Okay… Say, where are we going right now?"

"i was just gonna go to grillby's." Sans says with a shrug. "you don't have to come along if you don't want. like i said, papyrus just needed to be somewhere, so i made it easier for him to get going."

"Alright… I think I'll just go for a walk then. I'm not particularly hungry or anything."

"have fun with that. don't get into any trouble. who snows what might happen." Nyssa smirks.

"That was terrible." Sans shrugs.

"i've not been practicing much lately. don't worry, i've still got some ice ones up my sleeve." Nyssa rolls her eyes, then she stops and starts walking in a different direction, listening to Sans chuckle as he continues on his way. She looks down at the sleeves of her sweater, then lets out a long sigh.

"I really do hope they start liking me… I… I really want to be happy here." She looks up, then back down at her fingers as they poke out of her sleeves, a half-hearted smile on her lips. She continues walking, the cold making her shiver slightly.

"You're a strange one, aren't you?" She stops and looks around, but she doesn't see anyone. "In the trees." She looks towards the trees on her right and catches sight of a little yellow flower.

"O-oh, h-hello." She says as she turns to face him.

"Hi there. I'm Flowey the flower." He smiles up at her. "You've really been doing a lot since you arrived, haven't you?"

"Not really. I healed some monsters, but other than that I've just been playing with Papyrus and talking with different monsters." Flowey laughs.

"You don't understand, do you? You're really a phenomenon here. Even if you don't do anything, you're causing a stir."

"Uh, r-really?" Nyssa frowns. "Is…"

"Sorry. I just see and hear a lot of things, because I'm really just an observer. You see, being a little flower, its real easy for me to get hurt, so most monsters don't even know I exist. I don't mind. Just watching, listening, it's enough for me." His warm smile makes Nyssa smile back. "You've done so much. You've saved so many lives. You're a hero, Nyssa."

"Uh, I-I'm not…" Nyssa blushes.

"It's just too bad they don't appreciate you like they should." Her smile disappears. "You're so sweet and kind. You, as a human, have so much power that you could simply destroy everyone and everything here. Yet you choose to save us and protect us. It's amazing. But the other monsters don't treat you like their hero, do they? When you're there, or when you're gone, they don't speak well of you, and it's really sad."

"D-do you have a point?" Nyssa crosses her arms.

"You seem upset. I didn't mean to do that, really. I just… It hurts me to see all of this." He shakes his head. "Even smil… Even Sans, who watched you revive everyone, he, well…" His smile is no longer warm. It sends a chill down Nyssa's smile. "Tell me, do you think he cares about you? From what I've seen, he treats you pretty poorly."

"No! Sans, he…" Nyssa pauses. Her shoulders sink, and her eyes drop to the ground. "To… To be honest, Sans rarely speaks to me… Papyrus, he's always so fun and sweet." She smiles, but it fades almost instantly. "But… Sans… sometimes I think he's, maybe, avoiding me? Sure, when we talk he's friendly enough, but… He doesn't normally… Normally want anything t-to do with me." Her voice becomes quiet, almost a whisper.

"How sad." Flowey says. "He should be your best friend. After all, he saw your power, he knows what you can do. Also, you saved his brother, the most precious person in his life. You'd think he'd be your best friend." Nyssa looks at Flowey. "You know why monsters can't leave the Underground, right?"

"Uh, y-yeah… S-Sans told me… Why?" Flowey's face becomes more twisted and vicious, making Nyssa take a step back.

"It's only a matter of time before Sans tries to take your soul. You're the savior of this place, yet… Oh?" He stops as tears form in Nyssa's eyes, and a look of fright fills her face. She looks away, shutting her eyes tight.

"S-stop! Please! Please… I-I don't wanna remember." She holds herself tightly.

"…He's already tried, hasn't he?" Flowey's voice is quiet. Nyssa opens her eyes.

"I… Every time I see Sans… I see that image. All those bones, that scary glow in his eye… I-I try not to think about it. I've… I've never been so scared in my life."

"Didn't you want to kill yourself anyways though?" Nyssa looks at Flowey in surprise. "Oh, yes, like I said, I'm an observer. I heard your conversation with him just a short while ago. You wanted to end your life, so why does he scare you? He could grant your wish. If you die, then monsters could be free. Why not just die?" Nyssa shakes more.

"I…" She looks down, and her shaking slowly stops. Her expression becomes blank. "I-I can't… E-even if I still… Even though I still…" Flowey smirks. "I can't die. It's impossible, with this power of mine."

"Oh? That's pretty terrible." She looks at him again. "You want to die, but you're forced to stay alive. Well, given how magic and humans seems to work down here, you must have wanted to live so badly that you took in the magic around you and gained that power. Was it when you fell? Or…" Nyssa looks down again.

"I… I didn't know I even had this power until… Until the first time Sans…" She shakes her head. "N-no! I can't be thinking about this! Flower, Flowey, whatever your name is, you…" She glares at him, tears in her eyes. "Leave me alone. You… I don't wanna hear what else you have to say." She turns and quickly walks away.

"Oh, don't worry… I'll make you listen yet." Flowey laughs before he sinks back under the snow.


	6. Chapter 6

Sans stands on his balcony, looking out at the snow. A few snowflakes fall around him, but they're hardly noticeable. He takes in a deep breath, then slowly lets it out.

"SANS, ARE YOU OUT HERE AGAIN?"

"yeah bro. what's up?" Sans says as he turns and walks along the balcony. It wraps around the back of the house, where Papyrus can be seen sticking his head out of Sans' bedroom window.

"SANS, I'M A BIT WORRIED ABOUT NYSSA. PERHAPS I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH HOW HUMANS ACT, BUT I DON'T THINK IT'S NORMAL FOR HER TO SUDDENLY BE SO… QUIET." Sans motions for Papyrus to move, and so he retreats back into the room. He then sits on the window and swings his legs inside. His feet touch his bed, and he slides into the room.

"i can't really say what's up either. it is a bit strange that she's become a bit cold, but hey, maybe the weathers just getting to her."

"SANS, THIS IS SERIOUS. ITS BEEN THREE DAYS AND SHE HASN'T EATEN ANY OF MY SPAGHETTI! I EVEN BOUGHT HER SOME NICECREAM, BUT SHE JUST SAID SHE WASN'T HUNGRY. THIS CERTAINLY CAN'T BE HEALTHY, BUT WHEN I ASK HER WHY SHE'S ACTING SO STRANGE SHE SIMPLY SMILES AND TELLS ME SHE'S WORKING THROUGH SOMETHING."

"i don't know what to do bro. i could try talking to her, i guess, but she probably won't tell me anything different." Sans shrugs.

"EXCELLENT IDEA! MEANWHILE, I'M THINKING ABOUT PLANNING A LITTLE… SURPRISE FOR HER. IT'LL BE ONE OF THE GREATEST WORKS BY ME, THE GREAT PAPYRUS! NYEH HEH HEH!" Sans smiles.

"you're so cool bro." He hops off his bed and the two walk out of the room and towards the stairs. As they walk down they find the house is empty. "say, papyrus, where did she go?"

"I'M NOT SURE. SHE WAS SITTING ON THE COUCH, USING MY PHONE. ALPHYS HAD CALLED AND WISHED TO SPEAK WITH HER." Papyrus walks to the couch. "IT SEEMS SHE LEFT MY PHONE. PERHAPS SHE WENT TO VISIT ALPHYS."

"what would alphys want with her?" Sans looks at the door, then at Papyrus. "well, i guess i'll go find her and make sure she doesn't get stuck watching some of those weird shows she likes so much." He walks to the door.

"ALRIGHTY THEN! I'LL GET STARTED WITH MY PLANS!" Papyrus runs upstairs and into his room. Sans walks outside, then heads towards town. He walks up to the river, where a boat is waiting, with a hooded figure inside.

"you always seem to know when someone needs a ride." Sans says as he steps into the boat.

"Lucky guess I suppose. I love to ride on the river, and my love finds the people who need me. So, where are we going?"

"i need to head to hotland."

"Off we go." They begin to move, floating swiftly down the river. Sans looks at the water, and watches the gentle ripples as they roll away from the boat. The Riverman begins humming. Sans closes his eyes. "Here we are." He opens his eyes.

"quicker than i thought. heh." He steps off the boat and into Hotland. "thanks."

"Good luck with your adventures." The Riverman floats away, leaving Sans alone. He turns and starts walking. To his right he sees Alphys' lab, but instead he takes a left and heads towards Waterfall.

"that was a nice way to travel. shortcuts can be a bit boring sometimes." He continues on, strolling through the cool hallways.

"Uh, th-that is…" He stops when he hears speaking. "I don't really know… She called Papyrus and asked to talk with me, then she asked me if I could go help her with something. I… I'm just a bit turned around. I don't really… I don't really know where anything is."

"Well then, it can't be helped! I'll show you the way, if you can keep up with me!" Sans starts to walk again, but he jumps back as Undyne suddenly runs around a corner, then takes off down the way he came. He half smiles.

"she's… energetic." He looks back to see Nyssa walking around the corner, looking confused. She sees him, and their eyes meet. She quickly looks away.

"O-oh, Sans, wh… What are you doing here?" She asks.

"papyrus got a bit worried about you, so i said i'd make sure you were okay." She puts her hands in her pockets.

"Oh. Uh… I-I'm fine. Really." She fakes a smile.

"it doesn't look like you're fine. come on, we're all friends, right? what's eating at you?" She looks down.

"Just… I'll be fine Sans. I always… I'll be okay. F-for now, Alphys said she wanted some help. I'm not, you know, totally sure on who she is, but Papyrus said she was a good friend, so I thought I'd see what I could do." Sans doesn't say anything. "I-I should go. I-I don't think I'll be able to catch Undyne, b-but at least I know what way… what way to go." She starts walking.

"nyssa, you've not been acting the same since you and i talked before…" Nyssa stops. She looks Sans in the eye.

"It… wasn't you." She quietly says.

"come on then, tell me what's up. i'm really looking forward to a good nap, so i'd like to find out and put mine and pap's minds at ease. you've really got us worried."

"Do I?" Sans smile disappears. "I… Do you… Sans, do you even like me at all?" Sans smiles.

"of course i do. why would you think i didn't?"

"You… You're not the most… You don't really talk to me, and… You only ever seem interested in me because of Papyrus." She looks down, a pained smile on her face. "It doesn't really matter, does it? You wouldn't be the first."

"nyssa…" He's silent a moment, then Sans sighs and smiles. "you're right, i've not been all there with you. i guess i'm still feeling sour after what's happened. kinda hard to get over watching everyone you love die. but… i still like you, kid." Nyssa looks up, surprised. He closes his eyes. "to be honest, i'm also quite lazy, so i'm not the most interactive friend. that's more my brother's thing. look, whatever problems i may have, i'm glad you came, so, if that's what's been bothering you, then cheer up, okay?" Nyssa smiles.

"I… Thanks." She sighs. "I-I'm sorry. When that little flower was talking to me, he made me think something was really wrong." Sans' smile disappears.

"little flower?"

"Yeah." She rubs her arm and looks off to the side. "There was this little yellow flower, I think he said his name was Flowey, or, something like that. He started talking to me, and… the things he brought up did kinda make me think I wasn't wanted, even here." She looks at Sans. "Uh… S-Sans?" Sans closes his eyes.

"sorry. just remembered something." He opens one eye and smiles at her. "you need to go to alphys' lab, right? come on, i'll walk with you." Nyssa smiles.

"Okay." The two start walking. Both are quiet for a minute. "It's… strange. Some of the places here seem so… confining. But some spots are so beautiful."

"hmm… i never really thought about it, but i guess some places really are nice." He looks at Nyssa, and she's smiling, with her hands locked together, resting against her chest.

"I… I hope Papyrus will forgive me for being so down. Just… It's kinda hard to just stop being depressed."

"if you don't mind me asking, what sort of life did you have that pushed you to come here?" Nyssa bites her lip.

"It just… Wasn't pleasant. I didn't really have friends… I was just a joke to people. Life was, I don't know, empty? It's not the same here though. Even though its taking time, I feel loved here." She smiles at Sans. "I… I'm so much happier here. The more I think about it, the more I know it's true. There are some things that still get me, but… It's better, that's all that matters." Sans shuts his eyes a moment, then looks up at the ceiling.

"we're lucky you came along. even though you came to us for a bad reason, i'm glad you came." Nyssa blushes. "anyways, i wonder what alphys wanted. i don't talk with her too much. my brother and i don't go to hotland all that often. in fact, i can't think of the last time papyrus was there. he goes to waterfall all the time though, mostly to see undyne. you've met her a couple times now. she's a bit… excitable, but so is he, so the two get together a lot. she rarely comes to snowdin though. always complains about how cold it is." She looks away.

"Y-you don't say?" It isn't long before the two reach Hotland, then the lab. They walk up and the door opens. "Uh, h-hello?" They walk in.

"O-oh! H-hi, uh…" Alphys and Undyne are standing together. "W-welcome. Uh, Sans, I didn't, uh, I didn't expect you to c-come by."

"She wasn't expecting me either. The look on her face was priceless!" Undyne says with a smile.

"Uh, well, I-I need to, um, t-talk with Nyssa a-alone." Alphys quietly says. "Its… Uh… I…" She begins to sweat and shift nervously. She looks at Undyne, then at Nyssa and Sans. Nyssa smiles at her.

"Uh, its okay, don't worry. If you need to talk with me alone, that's alright." Alphys opens her mouth, then closes it again.

"No. No, with you here, I-I think… I think its t-time that I t-told everyone the truth."

"The truth?" Undyne looks at Alphys in confusion. Sans and Nyssa glance at each other.

"Yes. The truth." Alphys looks at Nyssa with a serious face. "A-after all that's happened, I-I can't lie to anyone a-anymore!" She turns and starts walking. "F-follow me." The three follow after her. They enter through the door to the side, walking past a hole in the wall. Nyssa looks at Sans, but he's half asleep as he walks. She smiles slightly, then looks ahead. Undyne and Alphys are walking ahead of them, with Alphys in the lead. They walk through a doorway, and enter into an elevator. As the elevator begins its descent, Alphys begins to sweat once again. She looks at the floor and tugs as her shirt.

"I never knew there was another part to this lab." Undyne says.

"Ah, w-well, its… I-I'm not proud of… Of what happened down here. But… But its time f-for me to share the truth. I-I have a lot of th-things to admit t-to."

"Whatever it is, especially if I can help fix it, I'm sure things'll be fine." Nyssa says, a sweet smile on her lips. Alphys smiles back.

"Thank you. I just hope th-that I can be forgiven f-for what I've done." As the elevator comes to a shaky stop, Alphys takes in a deep breath. The doors open, and she lets the air out. "O-okay. What you th-three are about to see is… it was with g-good intentions. I-it just… went… wrong." She walks out, and the three of them follow. Nyssa glances as Sans again. He's fully awake now, but he isn't smiling. They turn left and walk through a short hallway, with a right turn in the middle of it. Screens flash on as they walk past, but they don't stop to read them.

"It's a bit… spooky." Nyssa quietly says as she crosses her arms.

"Well… W-with what you're about to see, that wouldn't be a bad way to put it. Listen, I-I should warn you three. What I did down here… It was meant to help monsters, but it didn't go as planned. I don't know if either of you two remember when I asked for monsters wh-who had fallen." She glances back at the group.

"Nope. Don't know about it." Undyne says.

"sorta…" Sans adds.

"W-well I got l-lots of monsters who responded. I… I think you saw some of the power humans have, with their determination." She stops in a room filled with empty beds. "I… I wanted to harness that power. I thought, if I c-could, then maybe I-I could m-make a monsters soul last o-outside the body. I-If I did that, th-then we could u-use the power of those fallen monsters one last time a-at least. B-but that… that isn't what happened." She turns and looks at the group. "I was able t-to get that power, b-but monsters, we don't h-have enough physical matter t-to handle large quantities of it. A-at first, the monsters I i-injected with determination woke up. I-I was gonna send them home, but… then…" She looks down.

"What happened?" Nyssa's voice is soft. Alphys looks at her.

"Th-their bodies couldn't handle the determination. They began to… break down."

"Break down?" Nyssa frowns as she glances at Undyne and Sans. Undyne looks confused, but Sans simply looks tired and frustrated.

"Y-yes." Alphys walks to a food dish. "They broke down and m-melted together… They became… well… you'll see." She grabs a bag of food and pours it in the dish, then turns to face the rest of the room. "C-come eat!" She shouts. Almost right away a form appears, and instantly all three become sick at the sight. The combination of monsters is hard to take in. It isn't long before another comes, then another, then another, soon the room is filled with them. "Th-they became like this. I… I didn't know what to do. This was… This wasn't what I wanted." Alphys looks down. "I wanted to help…" The group goes silent.

"So, I can try to heal them, right?" Alphys looks up at Nyssa, who is smiling sweetly. "I mean… that's why you wanted me here, isn't it?"

"Y-yes!" Alphys smiles. "I-I can't fix my mistake, but by some grace you came along, and you should be able to! These monsters, they can finally be themselves again, and return to their families." She looks down, then back up at Nyssa. "P-please, help them."

"I'll do my best." Nyssa holds her hand out, and the green light reaches out towards the monsters. It wraps around them, and slowly they seem to come apart, only to reform into their original bodies. Undyne and Alphys look on with amazement. Sans looks at Nyssa though, watching as her breathing suddenly becomes strained, and she begins to sweat. Her body shakes, though only slightly, and she grits her teeth. When the light finally dissipates, there is a host of confused monsters simply standing in the room.

"W-wow…" Undyne says. "I-I hadn't seen you do that before… That was pretty wicked! You're really alright for a human!" She smiles at Nyssa, who weakly smiles back.

"Th-thanks." She replies with a quick, quiet laugh. Suddenly they hear crying. They look to see Alphys sobbing.

"Th-thank you! Thank you!" She shouts through her tears. "I'm so happy! Th-they're all… all okay!" The monsters begin to look around, and the realization of what had happened can be seen on their faces. Some of them begin to cry as well. Others celebrate. Undyne runs to Alphys' side, but Nyssa and Sans don't move.

"you really are something." Sans says. Nyssa smiles at him.

"I'm just glad I… I can help." She holds her head. "Oh… I-I think I need to rest soon though. That was a lot of monsters."

"you're holding up pretty well though, considering just how many monsters that is."

"Thanks, I-I guess." Nyssa starts to sway back and forth. "I-I really h-hate this. Wh-why does it take s-so much energy t-to heal o-others?" Sans quickly takes her hand and leads her to a bed. Nyssa sits down, then falls back.

"just rest for now. you'll wake up in a couple days and get to meet all these new monsters, don't worry about it. you earn your little cat naps." He says with a wink. Nyssa laughs lightly as her eyes shut, and she drifts off to sleep.


	7. Chapter 7

_You think you're helping. How cute. You really think you belong._

 _You._

 _Don't._

 _You're weak. Pathetic. You know you are. You feel it, down to your core. After all, that's what you've been told all your life, right? Don't you believe me? Don't you understand? You have no choice but to listen to me! They're using you! They don't actually care! What good has kindness ever done?_

* * *

Nyssa groans as she opens her eyes. Once again she's staring up at a plain ceiling. She looks to her side, and the room is just as messy as ever, and no one is around. She gets out of bed and stretches.

"I'm far too used to this." She quietly says to herself as she walks towards the door. When she opens it she walks to the ledge and looks down at the floor below. Sans is sleeping on the couch while the TV is on. Papyrus is sitting next to him, watching whatever is on. "Morning." She calls down. Papyrus looks up.

"NYSSA, YOU'RE AWAKE! SANS, SHE'S UP!" He shakes Sans.

"huh? what's up bro?" He looks at Papyrus.

"Hey, I thought I was the tired one." He looks up and smiles when he sees Nyssa.

"heh. if you're looking for a sleeping competition, i can beat you with my eyes closed." Nyssa giggles while Papyrus groans. She walks to the stairs and heads down.

"So, how long have I been out for this time?"

"ONLY FOR TWO DAYS. I'M SURPRISED YOU'RE AWAKE ALREADY. EVERYONE KNOWS ABOUT ALL THE MONSTERS YOU HELPED WITH ALPHYS. SHE'S NOT BEEN VERY ACTIVE AFTER TELLING EVERYONE WHAT SHE DID, BUT I THINK SHE'LL BE OKAY."

"That's good." Nyssa glances towards the kitchen. "Uh, is there anything to eat?"

"is that even a question here?" Sans says as Papyrus jumps to his feet.

"I'LL GET YOU SOME OF MY SPECIAL SPAGHETTI RIGHT AWAY!" He runs to the kitchen, and Nyssa giggles. She walks to the couch and sits in the middle of it.

"he's always excited when you wake up. he gets to make a bunch of his spaghetti and you just down it all." Sans says.

"I-I'm hungry when I wake up." Nyssa mumbles. "H-healing takes a lot of energy." Sans closes his eyes and leans against the arm of the couch.

"its not a bad thing. really… i'm glad to see him get so excited over this." Sans opens his eyes and looks towards the kitchen. "he deserves to be happy and have fun, you know?" Nyssa looks towards the kitchen as well, smiling.

"Yeah… He's so sweet and he works hard for everyone. I'd hope I'd be able to make him happy." Nyssa yawns as she leans back into the couch. "So… All those monsters…"

"their families were surprised to see them. originally, they were all in a coma, and on the brink of death, so having them all return, alive and well, it was about as happy of a time as anyone could imagine."

"I'm glad." Nyssa pulls her knees up to her chest and wraps her arms around her legs. Sans looks at at.

"so, uh, why are you curling up?"

"Hm?" Nyssa looks at him, then down at herself. "Uh… I don't really know. Just felt comfy." She says with a shrug.

"if that's comfy, then that's fine, i guess." He returns to his attempts to sleep. Nyssa sits there for a minute, until Papyrus walks back out with a plate of spaghetti.

"HERE YOU GO! SOME OF MY FAMOUS, HANDCRAFTED, MASTER SPAGHETTI!" Nyssa smiles as she sits up properly.

"Awesome! Thanks Papyrus!" He hands her the plate, then sits next to her, on the opposite side from Sans. Nyssa quickly gulps down the food, hardly taking the time to chew.

"MY GREATEST FAN. SEE SANS, SHE LOVES MY SPAGHETTI!" Nyssa giggles and Sans chuckles.

"Ah, maybe I'll have to cook with you sometime." She says between bites.

"NYSSA, YOU COOK?" Papyrus questions. Nyssa nods.

"I have a bit of a habit of burning things, but not too badly." She finishes the spaghetti, then lets out a sigh of relief. "That was good. Thank you Papyrus."

"YOU ARE MOST WELCOME. NOW THAT I KNOW YOU CAN COOK, THE TWO OF US MUST COOK TOGETHER! I CAN SHOW YOU MY MASTERFUL COOKING TECHNIQUES FOR SPAGHETTI!" Nyssa laughs.

"Sounds like fun." She stands and walks to the kitchen, sets the dishes on the counter, then looks up at the sink. "I… Still don't understand why its so high up. I can't even reach it." She walks back out and looks at the brothers. "I think I'm gonna go for a walk." She starts walking towards the door.

"BEFORE YOU GO, I JUST REMEMBERED THAT ALPHYS HAS, IN FACT, LEFT A PRESENT FOR YOU." Papyrus stands and runs up into his room. When he comes back down he has a phone, with a bow on it. "SHE CAME BY AND SAID TO GIVE THIS TO YOU WHEN YOU WAKE UP. I'VE TAKEN THE LIBERTY OF ADDING MY NUMBER TO IT ALREADY.'" Papyrus hands the phone to Nyssa.

"O-oh… Uh…" She looks at it. "This is great. I mean… I didn't…" She smiles. "This is really, really cool." She takes the bow off, then smirks and quickly reaches up, sticking it to Papyrus' head.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO THE GREAT PAPYRUS?" He shouts. Nyssa laughs, and so does Sans.

"You're a gift to the world Papyrus." Nyssa says with a wink, making Sans laugh more.

"if you wanna go for a walk then you might wanna wrap this up. after all, there's no time like the present."

"SANS, ENOUGH WITH YOUR PUNS!" Papyrus shouts as Nyssa laughs.

"Alright, I'm gonna go out then. I guess you can call me if I'm needed." She walks out the door, then walks into town. It's lively, with monsters walking about, chatting with each other.

"I'm thinking of making a trip to waterfall."

"Snowball war at noon! Be there!"

"Mom is back! Mom makes great food! Her tail is super fluffy! Great for chasing!" Nyssa smiles as she listens to each passing conversation. Monsters smile and wave at her, and some greet her. She looks down at her phone.

"This is…" She flips through the different apps, smiling. "I don't know what any of these apps are. This is ridiculous. I love it." She feels tears in her eyes, which, combined with the cold, makes them sting. She quickly wipes them away. "Everyone here… They're all so amazing." She looks up at those around her. They're all smiling and happy. "I… this place is a dream come true." She looks down at the phone, trying different apps. Most are games, but she finds the main phone, and then finds a social media app. "Hmm… This looks interesting. I mean… I guess I shouldn't be surprised they have all these things too. It's a whole society down here."

"Hey, human." She stops and looks at a little monster standing in front of her. "You're the one that saved everyone right? Even Undyne?"

"Uh, y-yeah." She half smiles, but the kid has a big smile as they look up at her.

"You're amazing! That last human, they were such a bad guy! Even Undyne was defeated! But that won't happen again! Not only do we have the best hero to beat up the bad guys, but now we have someone who can heal her! You two are like, an amazing duo! So cool!" They turn and run off, almost tripping, but manage to regain their balance before continuing. Nyssa giggles.

"That was cute." She quietly says as she continues her slow trek through the town. Suddenly, her phone rings. She answers. "Uh, h-hello?"

"Uh, N-Nyssa, it's A-Alphys."

"Oh, hi." Nyssa walks to the trees and leans back against one. "Are you doing okay? I heard you weren't really talking to anyone."

"I-I-I'm f-fine. I-I didn't th-think you'd c-care…"

"Well, given that I want to be friends with everyone, it's only natural I'd care, right?" There's no reply, save for a few quiet sniffles.

"Uh, I-I got a t-text from Papyrus. H-he said you were awake, so I, uh, I w-wanted to c-call and say, um, th-thank you. Y-you really s-saved me."

"No worries. I'm just glad I'm able to be of some use." She brushes some hair from her face, then frowns and runs her fingers through her hair. She grimaces at the greasy feeling.

"W-well, you r-really made a lot of m-monsters happy."

"So… What now?"

"Wh-what?" Nyssa looks up.

"What now? I'm… Not sure what's next, you know? How do I live normally down here? It doesn't seem all that different from what I'm used to, but… I'm not sure." She looks down at the ground. "Sorry. Just… It's a little weird. All of you are so friendly, and you trust me become I happen to have this power, but… I'm not really sure what I'm doing."

"You're living. I-isn't that enough reason t-to be happy down here? You're surrounded b-by good friends… I… I know that b-because they've a-all forgiven me. E-even the monsters I-I did that to…"

"I suppose." Nyssa pushes off the tree and starts walking again. "Maybe we'll get to hang out some time. Right now I only ever really see Sans and Papyrus for more than a few minutes at a time. Even then, the two have work they go do. It'd be nice to go and see the rest of this place. I mean… I was really amazing when I walked through Waterfall. It's so beautiful. Humans don't have some of those things."

"I-I think I'd, you know, I-I'd like to hang out, maybe… D-do you like anime?"

"Yeah. You know about anime?"

"Yes! I love it! I-it ends up in the trash in Waterfall a-all the time! S-so I grab it and c-collect it. I've g-got tons of s-seasons of stuff!"

"Cool!" Nyssa giggles. "Anime sounds almost normal… I think I'll enjoy that. Thanks Alphys."

"R-right! W-we'll definitely h-hang out then!"

"Sounds good."

"W-well… Th-that's it, I think. Oh, uh, I-I hope you, you know, don't mind th-that I made y-you an account on Undernet. I-It's the biggest s-social media site down h-here. It's really cool."

"Thanks. I saw the app, but I wasn't sure what it was. I'll look at it now."

"A-alright then! B-bye!"

"Buh-bye." Nyssa hangs up, a smile on her lips as she opens the Undernet app. "Oh, she really did make an account. What's my name?" She presses a few different buttons. "I have no clue what I'm doing." She says with a laugh. "Oh well. I'll just ask Sans or Papyrus to show me how to use this. I'm sure Papyrus'll jump at the opportunity." She puts the phone away, then looks around. She's no longer in the town. "This is…" Slowly she comes to a stop as a gentle snowfall reaches down to her. She holds her hand up towards the sky, reaching towards the falling snowflakes. A few land on her hand, and she pulls it back in time to watch them melt on her skin. She smiles as her eyes catch the cloud that is her breath escaping her body. She continues walking, quietly humming a song as she lets her feet lead her into the snowy forest.


	8. Chapter 8

_Worthless. Listen to me, and maybe your life will mean something._

* * *

 _Why do you keep trying? You feel it in your soul. Just give up. They. Don't. Care._

* * *

 _They ask you for help. What do they give you? Smiles? A phone? Ha… Ha ha ha ha hah! Over and over you get used. Over and over I tell you to get rid of them. You don't listen. Are you so desperate for attention? Are you so starved for love that you think they can give it to you? They're monsters… What love do they truly have for you?_

* * *

 _Such a fool. Why not try my way? These days keep passing, and you feel your heart sinking more and more. Your smile is fake. Your laugh is forced. I know. I'm with you. I'm your only friend. I'm the only one who understands this hollow life you live. Just do as I say, and you'll really feel something. Trust me…_

* * *

Nyssa sits up, her head spinning. She looks around the living room, but it's still dark. No one is around. She groans and lies back down.

"This needs to stop." She mutters as she closes her eyes again. "I can't sleep like this…"

 _Then kill them._

She sits up again, her eyes wide. She starts to shake.

"Th-this isn't funny. This isn't normal." She looks around. "I… I can't…" She leans into the back of the couch, her eyes heavy. "What can I do though?" She mutters. "Every night… I'm really getting sick of this voice… I'd blame the spaghetti, but I don't think that's causing me delusions." She half smiles. "Heh…" She looks upstairs. "I… wonder if… Sometimes…" She stands and walks towards the stairs. Slowly she makes her way up, and then down to Sans' door. Gently, she knocks a couple of times. "S-Sans?"

"why are you awake?" Nyssa opens the door to see Sans sitting on his bed, looking out the window.

"I… Well…" Nyssa mumbles. Sans glances at her.

"everything okay? you usually sleep like a log. Why'd you leaf dreamland?" He smiles as he turns his body to face her. Nyssa sighs and smiles sheepishly at him.

"Sans, I… I've been having these weird dreams. They're… Not really dreams. They're just black, but… I hear someone speaking to me." She walks in and shuts the door behind her. Her voice is soft, but shaky. "I-I tried to brush them off at first… But… Lately they've been getting worse. I… I'm having a hard time sleeping. They're really bothering me." She looks to the side of him. "I… I thought, if I talked with someone… M-maybe that could, you know, help some…" Her voice quickly fades to nothing.

"sounds bad. i mean, if you're really not able to sleep cause these dreams are so freaking, then i guess it can't hurt to talk to someone. i'm surprised you'd talk to me though." Nyssa looks at him.

"I… can trust you. And I… I don't think you'll just brush them off or get overly concerned about them, so… Sorry. It really is weird of me. I-I can go." She looks away again, her smile gone.

"nah. i'm up anyways. come sit next to doctor sans and tell him all that ails you." He pats the empty space on his bed. Nyssa smiles and walks over. She sits down and scoots back so she's against the wall. She then pulls her legs up against her body and wraps her arms around them. "so, what's been going on in these dreams exactly? what's this weird voice been saying?"

"It's… Um…" She looks away. "W-well, it tends to start out by… telling me… things l-like how… how pathetic I am. It's really cruel." She looks at Sans, but finds her eyes drawn to the gentle glow of crystals reflecting off the snow on the balcony outside the window. She feels her shoulders relax at the sight. "I can deal with that sort of thing. I tell myself worse stuff all the time." She looks away again, and her whole body becomes tense. "B-but… It also… It keeps telling me that… That the monsters don't care, and that it's my only hope or friend or whatever. I-It also…" She bites her lip. It's quiet for a few moments. Sans feels a single drop of sweat roll down his head.

"what else does it say?"

"It… keeps telling me to… t-to try k-killing everyone." She chokes the words out. Sans feels a chill run down his spine.

"you…" Nyssa quickly looks up at him.

"I-I'm not going to! I-I would never!" She sighs and gives Sans a defeat look. "I'm just so tired of hearing it over and over. It keeps me up, and it scares me. I don't want to hear something so ridiculous." She looks away, smiling sadly. "Heh… I-it's not like I can fight anyways. How can I kill anything? I know you said humans are stronger because of our bodies being so physical, but… I-I still could never k… kill." She tightens her hold on her legs. "I don't know how to stop it though." Her voice is barely audible. "I want it to go away so I can sleep and actually be happy. It won't though. It keeps coming back, and its getting more and more insistent." Sans watches her for a few moments, then he sighs and smiles at her while closing one eye.

"sounds pretty serious. honestly, i've got no idea how to fix something so weird. but if you truly feel that way, and you really want to stay with us, then i think that voice will have to give up eventually." Nyssa looks at Sans. He closes both his eyes now. "heh." He opens them and looks into Nyssa's eyes. "next time, just tell that voice to take a hike off a cliff. you're no killer, and you never will be." Nyssa smiles.

"Thanks." She reaches over and hugs Sans, surprising him. When she pulls away she also slips off the bed. "I-I should try and sleep some more. I'm…" She looks at the door, then at Sans. "I'm glad I can count on you. Sorry if this was weird." Sans sighs and waves her comment away.

"hey, what are friends for, if not to remind each other that they aren't psychopathic killers?" He winks, and Nyssa shakes her head.

"Goodnight Sans." She says as she walks to the door.

"night nyssa." She walks out, and Sans' eyes go blank. He listens as her footsteps disappear downstairs, then he sighs and shuts his eyes tight. "don't make me regret anything, kid. i've already got enough regrets for a thousand timelines."


	9. Chapter 9

Nyssa looks at the bookshelves in front of her, her eyes drifting back and forth. Finally, she reaches out and pulls a book off. She opens to the first page and begins to read it, then sets it back. She looks through the spines of the books again, until another catches her eye. She pulls it out and once again starts reading. This time she turns and walks to the counter.

"I'd like to check this book out." She says to the monster behind the counter.

"Alright. I'll write that down." Nyssa smiles.

"Thank you." She walks out of the library, then starts walking back towards her home. In the distance she spots Papyrus, holding a piece of paper as he walks away from his home. "Hey Papyrus. Where are you going?" She asks. He jumps and turns to face her.

"WELL, YOU SEE, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE, UM… PLANS. AND I'M LATE! I MUST BE OFF! GOODBYE!" He runs towards Waterfall. Nyssa frowns.

"Oh… Bye." She quietly says. She walks up to the front door and heads inside. Inside she hears music coming from Sans' room. She walks to the couch and drapes her blanket over herself, then opens her book. "Papyrus sure has been doing that a lot recently. I hope everything's okay." She begins to read, and for an hour she simply sits there, enjoying her borrowed book.

"what'd you get?" Nyssa looks up to see Sans leaning against the railing upstairs, looking down at her.

"A book." She says with a smirk.

"sounds fascinating." He walks down the stairs. "you see where papyrus went?"

"He was heading towards Waterfall last I saw. But that was at least an hour ago." Nyssa returns to reading. "What have you been doing?"

"just listening to some music." He walks to the kitchen.

"I could hear." When he walks back out he's holding a bottle of ketchup. Nyssa glances up at him. "You really like ketchup, don't you?"

"what can i say? it…"

"I HAVE RETURNED!" Papyrus shouts as he throws the door open. Nyssa laughs.

"Welcome home Papyrus." She closes her book. "Did you get have fun with whatever it was you were doing?"

"YES." He shuts the door, then frowns. "I MEAN… NO… I MEAN, I WASN'T DOING ANYTHING! I SIMPLY WENT FOR A WALK." Papyrus smiles nervously. Nyssa glances at Sans, but he's simply drinking his ketchup, which makes her gag.

"Uh, o-okay." She quickly looks away from Sans. "Well, I'm glad your back now."

"YES. SAY, NYSSA, FOR NO PARTICULAR REASON, YOU DIDN'T HAVE ANY PLANS FOR TOMORROW, CORRECT?" Nyssa looks at Papyrus.

"For the hundredth time Papyrus, no." She says with a giggle. "What is your obsession with tomorrow?"

"THERE IS NOTHING. I AM SIMPLY ASSURING THAT YOU AREN'T BUSY. THAT IS ALL. NOW, I MUST QUICKLY GO TO MY ROOM WITHOUT ANY FURTHER DISTURBANCES!" He runs upstairs and into his room. Nyssa shakes her head and looks at Sans.

"Your brother is strange sometimes."

"i don't know, he doesn't seem any stranger than normal." He takes another drink from the ketchup, and Nyssa sticks her tongue out.

"How can you just drink that stuff? Just… I don't think I can ever get over that."

"what? it's delicious." Sans says with a wink. Nyssa shakes her head again.

"You skeletons are weird." She pulls her blanket tighter.

"we're not weird. you're the weird one here." He walks over and sits next to Nyssa, still drinking his ketchup.

"So, do you have any clue why Papyrus is so worried about tomorrow?" Sans shrugs.

"you'll just have to wait and see." Nyssa groans.

"I'm not patient though. I wanna know now!"

"maybe you should go see a doctor then." Nyssa glares at him, and he smiles at her.

"Go away." She holds her book so it's blocking her view of Sans. He laughs, and she smiles.

"hey, have you thought about what you're going to do with your days? i mean, i don't mind you just hanging out around the house and keeping papyrus busy, but it seems like you're getting a bit bored after a few weeks of just that." Nyssa sighs and closes her book.

"I don't know. I think it'd be best if I had something more to do. Though, I don't think I can watch for humans like you and Papyrus. Seems a bit odd."

"heh. well, i could always hire you into my hotdog business." He takes a drink from the ketchup. "we'll set you up a booth around here." Nyssa snickers.

"Th-that sounds like fun." She looks up at Papyrus' door, then at Sans, who is already half asleep. With a smile on her lips, she once again opens her book and begins to read.

* * *

Nyssa sighs as she sits on Papyrus' bed. She hears speaking downstairs, but she can't make out what they're saying. She pokes at Papyrus' action figures.

"I really wish they'd hurry up with whatever they've got planned." She mumbles as she looks around. After a few minutes of sitting on the bed she starts to stand, but a wall of bones appears, blocking her in. She glares at the bones. "Monsters are no fun. Can't even cheat a little bit." She kicks one of the bones. "I wouldn't try to sneak a peek at what you're doing if you'd hurry up."

"sorry, but pap is insisting on things being perfect." Sans opens the door and Nyssa puffs her cheeks up.

"What is even going on?"

"can't say yet. everything is about ready though, so i'm supposed to escort you. that means you gotta close your eyes." The bones disappear, and Nyssa gets off the bed.

"Alright, alright." She shuts her eyes. Sans takes her hand and begins leading her through the house. When they reach the stairs she squeezes his hand as she slowly makes her way down the steps.

"for someone who can heal, you're pretty scared."

"I can heal. Doesn't mean it hurts any less." They reach the bottom, and Sans continues to lead the way. When he opens the front door, Nyssa frowns. "Outside?"

"just wait and see." He continues leading her. "your eyes are still shut, right? papyrus'll be pretty upset if you ruin it by peeking."

"Yes, I'm being a good girl. Don't worry." Sans opens a door and they walk in. "Back inside?" She quietly asks, but he doesn't say anything. Rather, they stop walking.

"alright, open your eyes." Nyssa does, and what she sees is a decorated bedroom, with Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, and Alphys standing in it. Along with the basic furniture, there are streamers and balloons littering the walls.

"SURPRISE!" Papyrus shouts. Nyssa looks at them in surprise, the setting overwhelming her. "YOU'VE BEEN DOWN HERE FOR A MONTH NOW, SO I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, ONLY THOUGH IT REASONABLE TO THROW A PARTY IN YOUR HONOR! AND LOOK, A FEW FRIENDS CAME TO CELEBRATE AS WELL. IT'S A SMALL ROOM, OR I'D HAVE INVITED EVEN MORE! OH, YES, THIS ROOM IS YOURS NOW! IT IS THE GUEST HOUSE NEXT TO OUR OWN. WE WILL SEE ABOUT BUILDING A WALKWAY OVER HERE THOUGH, SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO WALK IN THE SNOW EVERY TIME. BUT NOW YOU DON'T HAVE TO SLEEP ON THE COUCH EVERY NIGHT!" Tears fill Nyssa's eyes as her hand covers her mouth.

"Nyssa, a-are you alright?" Alphys asks. Nyssa looks down, then back up at them, the tears sliding down her cheek.

"I… This is…"

"OH NO! IS THIS NOT TO YOUR LIKING? I WASN'T SURE WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE, BUT I DIDN'T THINK I WOULD UPSET YOU." Nyssa shakes her head. Her hand drops to her side, revealing a smile.

"I-I'm so… Happy." She quietly says. "I didn't… I haven't h-had anyone care about me th-this much… You…" She runs and hugs Papyrus. He smiles and hugs her back.

"I'M GLAD YOU'RE HAPPY." Nyssa steps back, laughing lightly.

"S-sorry. I'm just… I-I never really h-had anyone throw me a… a party. This is so… Amazing."

"WELL THEN, LET US THROW YOU THE GREATEST PARTY EVER! WE HAVE MANY AMAZING ACTIVITIES PLANNED, AND PLENTY OF FOOD TO ENJOY!"

"O-okay. Th-that sounds great." She wipes away some of her tears.

Suddenly she's in a cave, standing atop some flowers, with moonlight shining down through a hole in the ceiling. She simply stands there for a moment, not moving, not even an inch.

"Wh-what…" She slowly looks around. "S-Sans? Sans? Wh-what did you do? Where are you?" Her heart begins to race. "Sans?" She shouts. "Th-this isn't funny! Wh-why did you bring me here? You're the only one who can do that!"

"You remember?" Flowey says as he pops up out of the ground. He smirks up at Nyssa. "You're a lot like me then. Every reset you'll remember. Now, won't that make for some fun times?" He laughs.

"R-reset? Wh-what are you talking about? What's going on? This place… Th-this is where I ended up when I fell, isn't it? Why am I back here?"

"You really don't get it?" Flowey asks. "How stupid. Chara was patient. But, you got boring, so everything got reset. All those fun times, and those memories… They're. All. Gone. You didn't just get teleported or anything boring like that. Time its self has been turned back."

"Wh… No! No!" Nyssa starts running, and her tears do the same. "No! Please, I can't… They can't have forgotten me! They can't! Not with everything that happened! Please!" She hears Flowey laughing as she runs. Through room after room she goes, until suddenly she turns a corner and sees Sans. She smiles. "Th-thank…"

"hey there. i'd like to say its nice to meet you, but… well, look, nothing personal kid, i just don't wanna go through this all again." Nyssa feels her heart stop. Sans holds his arm up as his eye begins to glow, and bones appear behind him.

"No… Sans! Stop!" She shouts. Her voice breaks as her body shakes. Sans hesitates.

"you know my name?"

"Yes! You're my friend! You… and P-Papyrus… and…" She falls to her knees. "E-everything reset! Why did it reset? All that time! All the things we did!" She begins sobbing. Sans eye stops glowing, and the bones disappear.

"k-kid… you…" Nyssa looks at him, her face messy from crying. "how… how long were you here before things reset?"

"A m-month." She shakes her head. "A month! Papyrus even threw me a party! I was so happy! And it's all disappeared! I have to start over! Why did this happen?"

"Because you didn't listen." Flowey pops up in front of Nyssa, smiling. "But, hey, you could always kill smiley trashbag over there. I'm sure Chara won't reset again if you do what she says."

"Why would I kill anyone? Get out of here you stupid flower!" Nyssa swipes at Flowey, but he easily dodges.

"weed…" Flowey looks at Sans with a smirk.

"Oh, you still seem to think things weren't planned like this. Well, doesn't matter. We're about to reset again, and you won't remember a thing." Nyssa's eyes go wide.

"N-no! Don't reset!" She shouts. Suddenly she's back atop the flowers. Her body feels heavy as she sits there, tears falling onto the flowers. "Wh-why?" She whispers. "Why make me go through this again?" slowly, she gets to her feet, then starts to walk. In silence she goes, until finally she walks into a room where Sans is. She looks sadly at him. "S-Sans." He frowns.

"huh, you know my name. not sure what to think about that."

"I-I know your name because I'm your friend. Please, I…" He raises his hand, and her heart stops.

"i tried to be friends with a human already, and it didn't go very well. don't know if you're actually related to the last kid or not, but i can't go through all of that pain again. sorry, nothing personal." His eye begins to glow.

"Sans, wait! Please!" He raises his hand as the bones appear behind him. He throws his arm forward, the bones fly at her. Nyssa's eyes go wide. Suddenly, her heal button appears. She hits it, and as the green light shoots out, Sans pulls his arm back. The bones stop, and the light splits off, wrapping itself around some of the dust, as well as Sans. Nyssa sighs with relief, and for a moment she shuts her eyes. When she opens them she's back at the start once again. Her smile disappears, and she bites her lip.


	10. Chapter 10

Over and over again, Nyssa meets Sans in the dark ruins. Each time Sans prepares to attack her, but he stops as Nyssa either speaks, or uses her power. Then, everything resets. Finally, Nyssa doesn't even leave her starting room. She simply walks to a wall and sits there, waiting to be found. Though it takes longer than normal, eventually Sans walks into the room.

"heh, never realized these ruins were so big… hey, kid, you look…" Sans pauses as he looks at Nyssa. "…we've been here before, haven't we?" Nyssa fakes a smile.

"So many times. This Chara person keeps resetting, and… I-I'm kinda tired of it all." Her voice is quiet and shaky. Sans simply stands on the opposite side of the room, looking at her for a moment.

"i didn't think i'd spare any human i found after what's just happened, but… it ain't hard to tell that you aren't an enemy of mine. in fact, you look pretty defeated. i take it you never did well against me." He smiles, and Nyssa looks at him in surprise.

"Y…" She smiles. "Heh… T-to be honest, you've only h-hurt me once, but… y-you've never o-outright spared me before." She stands. "I… I'm sure everything'll reset soon, but… Thank you, Sans." Sans shrugs.

"it's not really fair you get to remember all these resets, but i suppose i'll let it slide. you look like you've been through hell."

"You could definitely say that." Nyssa laughs lightly. She looks Sans in the eye. "Sans… this'll stop. When it does, we'll fix everything again… I can save everyone again." Sans looks surprise, but he quickly returns to smiling.

"in that case, i'm really rooting for ya k…" Before he can finish speaking, Nyssa is alone again, standing in the middle of the flowers. She sighs, but a slight smile is on her lips.

"I guess waiting here is the best option. At least it keeps me from getting attacked." She walks back to the wall and sits down, waiting once again. This time though, no one comes. She waits, and waits, and waits, yet no Sans appears before her. Not even Flowey shows to mock her. After a while, She gets to her feet. Then, slowly, she starts walking.

Each dust pile she passes makes her begin to raise her hand, but she pulls back, her thoughts a mixture of her passing out, and the possible need of it in the future. She continues on, until she finds herself standing outside the ruins. She looks out at the snowy woods in disbelief. "Where… Where is Sans?" She feels her heart stop a moment. "No… He… No!" She starts running. Each time she starts to get tired or sore, she heals herself. Her body keeps refreshing, but she feels the tiny bit of wear on her soul each time. She makes her way to Snowdin, but as she passes the home of the skelebros, she stops. She looks at it, then she tries to open the front door. It's locked. She frowns and walks to the window off to the left. She reaches up on tiptoes and pulls the window open. She grabs the window ledge, then jumps up. She pulls herself about halfway through, then she reaches out and presses her button. The green light shoots towards the table, hitting the container on it. The dust rises out of it, and soon Papyrus is standing next to the table.

"WHAT… HAPPENED?" Papyrus starts looking around.

"Papyrus! Over here!" He looks to see Nyssa, in the window. "C-can you open the door? This is starting to hurt my stomach." She half smiles.

"WAIT, HUMAN, WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY WINDOW?" He shouts. Nyssa giggles.

"Just, open the door." She pushes back and falls into the snow. The front door opens as she gets back to her feet. Papyrus looks out. "Papyrus, look, you don't know me, but I need you to trust me. Sans might be in danger, and I… I don't know if I can do anything to help him by myself."

"MY BROTHER? I'M READY TO GO!" He starts to run out.

"Uh, y-you might want to… you know, get dressed." Nyssa blushes slightly as she looks away. Papyrus looks down at himself, and he blushes as well.

"O-OH MY! I-I WILL BE BACK!" He runs back inside, and Nyssa shakes her head.

"H-he's just a skeleton, but… h-he's… i-it's weird. So weird." She laughs. When Papyrus comes back out he's dressed, though he still looks embarrassed. "Alright, let's go!" Nyssa starts running, and Papyrus is right at her side.

"HUMAN, THIS IS A BIT STRANGE. I DON'T EVEN KNOW YOUR NAME!"

"My name is Nyssa." She glances at Papyrus. "It's a long story as to how I know you or your brother, but… You two, even though you don't remember, did so much to change my life before. You're one of my best friends."

"WE'RE… FRIENDS? BEST FRIENDS?" Nyssa smiles at him and nods.

"Yeah." She looks forward again. The two begin to make their way through Waterfall, but they come to a stop when they turn a corner to find Chara standing in their way.

"Oh… You came to meet me. That's good." They smile, and a chill runs down Nyssa's spine.

"Th-that voice." Nyssa takes a step back. Papyrus looks between the two of them. "Y-you're the one that's been talking to me!"

"You remember. Well, that's good. Maybe now that I'm in a body you'll actually listen to me." Nyssa glances at Papyrus.

"p-papyrus?" Nyssa looks beyond Chara to see Sans. "y-you're… alive?" He shakes slightly, making a quiet rattling sound with his bones.

"Well, isn't this nice? We've got the skeleton brothers, reunited." They gently sway their knife back and forth. "To be honest, I was looking for a one on one. That's why I didn't even bother with fighting Sans this time. Well, it can't really be helped."

"Why are you doing this?" Nyssa shouts. "You're the one resetting, right? You're the one who kept making me relive that horrible moment! Who stole everything!" She glares at Chara. "Why?"

"I've already seen this world die. It was great." Chara smirks. "The thing is, I wasn't the one having the fun. You see, this body isn't mine. This body belongs to a kid named Frisk. They came here, and they destroyed everything, waking me up." They look back at Sans, then return to looking at Nyssa. "Of course, when we destroyed everything, they suddenly weren't happy." They laugh. "They thought they were above consequences! That killing everyone wouldn't be bad! At first they were just scared, but they kept going, and going, until nothing was left!" They start walking towards Nyssa and Papyrus. "They traded me their soul for their chance at a happy ending, but life isn't that simple. And once they realized their happy ending was mine to play with, they reset again. Thing is, I didn't promise them another chance after that. Their body, their soul, it's all mine now."

"Then why have you been harassing me?" Nyssa questions.

"Because you're different. You were unexpected. As well, your power… I want it." Chara stops feet away from Nyssa. "I haven't been able to get past my biggest obstacle. Even Frisk struggled with it." Nyssa glances at Sans. He's simply standing there, in shock. "Besides, there could be so much more fun if I could use your power and my own. The power to reset and the power to heal. Eternal life and unending retries. It's a perfect combo, isn't it?"

"Y-you can't have my power!"

"You think you have a choice?" Chara glances at Papyrus, then suddenly they lunge at him.

"No!" Nyssa starts to move, but Chara's attack is stopped by a wall of bones.

"I HOPED YOU WOULD CHANGE, BUT… YOU REALLY HAVEN'T." Papyrus quietly says.

"so far i've just stood back, but… i think it's time i got involved." Sans says as his eye begins to glow. Chara looks from one brother to the other and grits their teeth.

"So annoying." Chara's eyes stop on Nyssa, and they smirk.

"Don…" Nyssa starts to speak, but she's cut off when Chara lunges at her. She stumbles back, but Chara grabs her wrist and yanks her forward, making her lose her balance. "H-hey!" Nyssa shouts. Chara twists her arm behind her back and puts her knife to Nyssa's throat.

"Go ahead, kill me!" Chara shouts with a laugh. "You'll have to kill your only hope at saving anyone though!" Papyrus and Sans both look nervous. "She can heal, it's quite impressive. Papyrus is alive thanks to Nyssa here. If you want to kill me, well, it'll mean, one way or another, she's gonna die as well."

"Wh-what are you doing? What's the point of this?" Nyssa questions. Chara is shorter than her, so she's bent backwards, trying to keep the knife from pressing any harder against her throat.

"You'll see. Either I get my way, or we both die." Chara quietly says as the two brothers look at each other. "Monsters don't care. Humans don't either. No one matters. You're holding on to something as useless as feelings. Love, trust, hope? Those are all garbage. Kill or be killed, that's all that's ever been, and all that will ever matter. It's the only lasting truth."

"No its n…" Nyssa starts to shout, but suddenly Chara lets go and shoves her forward. Several bones run Nyssa through, and she simply stands there, the pain overwhelming her.

"See?" Chara shouts with a laugh. "They killed you without hesitation! Just like Sans did in every one of those resets! He tried, again and again!" Sans eye stops glowing.

"SANS! YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE ATTACKED! THAT HUMAN ISN'T AN ENEMY!" Papyrus shouts.

"i… i didn't have a choice! i have to protect you!" Sans shouts, though his voice is shaky as he watches Nyssa fall to her knees.

"It's ridiculous! Just give up on them!" Chara shouts. "Come with me! I'll never betray you!" A crunching sound fills the air, and the bones fall out of Nyssa before disappearing. The holes in her chest quickly heal, and she coughs up some blood.

"Th-that… S-still hurts…" She quietly says as she shakily stands. She covers some of the holes with her right arm, then walks to the nearby wall. She leans back against it and smirks at Sans. "S-seriously S-Sans… Y-you're so annoying. Th-this is the s-second time you've k-killed me."

"y-you're… alive?" Chara's smile disappears as Nyssa smirks at them.

"HUMAN! YOU'RE ALIVE! THANK GOODNESS! BUT, HOW?"

"I-I can heal. I can even revive the dead. That's what they want, that power…" She laughs. "But you can't have it!"

"Why do you think that's so funny?" Chara growls.

"Don't you get it?" Nyssa looks at Papyrus, then at Sans, and finally back at Chara. "I… didn't want to live before, you know. That's why I climbed the mountain. But…" She looks up at the ceiling. "Well, these silly skeletons took me in, and they… they made me feel like I actually meant something to someone. It's pretty crazy." She smirks at Chara again. "You can reset. Over and over we can do this song and dance, and you'll think that each time you're getting in my head, that you can make me hate them enough to let you have your way. That isn't going to happen."

"You doubt my power?"

"No. Your power is real." Nyssa pushes off the wall. "But so is mine. You really should pick your battles better, kid. You can reset all your like, but no matter how many times you do, no matter what you do to me, I'm the one opponent you will never get past." She starts walking towards Chara. "I can't die. And once that fact is known, these guys, the ones who can actually fight, unlike me, they can do whatever they need to kill you. I won't hold a grudge against the only people who have ever made me think life is worth living."

"Th-they're just using you then! They don't care!"

"They do though! Even though they don't remember me, I know they care about me, and will continue to, just like they did that first month I lived here." As Nyssa gets close, Chara begins to back up. "I will gladly risk my life, go through hell, all for the sake of the people who made me finally believe I shouldn't be dead. Reset all you want, I'm not afraid of being attacked. Why should I be? Sure, it hurts, but I can't die." Chara hits a wall, and Nyssa stops just a few feet away from them. "But you can. You can die, over and over, and each time you have to go through the same, boring days, hours, minutes, all of that, just to get back to that moment so you can try again."

"Y-you think you can stop me?" Chara grits their teeth. "I am determination! I am power! I will destroy this world, over and over, and make you feel that pain!"

"Try it. I'll stop you every time."

"You don't get it…" Chara smirks. "I am determination. I have nothing in life but this destruction. I don't care what it takes, I can endure it all for that final, beautiful end. That power isn't something a fool like you can comprehend!"

"A fool, huh?" Nyssa laughs. "You didn't even realize what you told me."

"What?" Nyssa holds her hand out, and the green light shoots out from it, reaching out to Papyrus, Sans, and Chara.

"h-hey! what is this?" Sans shouts.

"This is my power. I heal." Chara smirks.

"You idiot! You healed me! I…" They suddenly stop smirking.

"No, I didn't." Nyssa winks. "You don't own that body of yours, or that soul. Now, I can't say I know everything about souls, just what Sans told me in that old timeline. What I can say though is that your host, the one you traded souls with, is still in that body of yours, and they probably don't want this either."

"Wh-what… Have you…" Chara doubles over, dropping their knife.

"WHAT'S GOING ON?" Papyrus shouts.

"There are two people in that body! I simply gave the original owner a little revival. If they truly wanted to make things right, then I figured they'd stop Chara, at least long enough for us to stop all of this."

"Please…" The voice coming from Chara is different. It's softer. "Help me… Stop this…" Nyssa feels her heart break a little at the sad sound.

"I'm trying." Nyssa looks at Sans. "Sans! There has to be a way to destroy a soul, right?"

"wh-what? are you crazy?" He shouts. "we need that soul! and what good…"

"Without a soul, Chara is powerless! It would permanently kill both Chara and this kid if we can destroy their shared soul! It's the only way to stop the resets!" Sans hesitates.

"i-i think we can. when a human is killed, the magic down here will extract their soul from their body. we could destroy their soul really easy."

"Then that's what we have to do. I know you want their soul to get out, but they'll reset too quickly!"

"IF THAT'S THE ONLY WAY TO PROTECT EVERYONE, THEN IT'S WHAT WE MUST DO!"

"D-don't you d-dare!" Chara shouts.

"Then we need to move quickly! One of you has to kill them!" Sans looks at Papyrus, then his eye begins to glow.

"that i can do. i hate to break a promise, but at this point it's not really one i can keep." He holds his hand up, and bones appear around Nyssa. She looks around herself. The bones fly forward, and she watches them pierce through Chara. For a moment, nothing happens. Then, they smile, before falling to the ground. It only takes a moment before a red heart materializes just above the bloody body. It simply sits there, a gentle glow coming from it.

"W-we need to…" Nyssa starts. Suddenly, bones appear around it and run it through. Nyssa looks at Sans, but he looks surprised. She then looks to Papyrus.

"I… WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE SURFACE. I ALSO WISH THAT THEY HAD CHOSEN A DIFFERENT PATH. IT LOOKS LIKE ONE OF THE HUMANS IN THAT BODY DID CHOOSE DIFFERENTLY. THEY WANTED IT TO END, SO THAT EVERYONE ELSE COULD BE HAPPY…" Papyrus looks ready to cry. Nyssa looks back at the broken body in front of her.

"I… think this was the right thing." She falls to her knees. "O-okay, I'm done." She falls onto her back and stares up at the ceiling. Tears stream down her face. "I-I'm overwhelmed, I-I'm tired…" Papyrus and Sans walk over to her, and she smiles up at them as they look down at her. "S-sorry. Healing wears down my soul really badly. I-I just need to sleep for a little while, then we can start reviving everyone again." Papyrus smiles as he picks her up.

"I CAN'T SAY I UNDERSTAND EVERYTHING THAT'S HAPPENED, NOT COMPLETELY, BUT I DO UNDERSTAND THAT YOU NEED SOME REST, AND NO YOUNG LADY WILL BE SLEEPING ON THE GROUND WHILE THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS AROUND!" Sans smiles, and Nyssa giggles.

"Thanks Pap…" She closes her eyes and curls up in his arms.


	11. Chapter 11

Two weeks have passed peacefully. Once again, Nyssa is sleeping on the couch of the skeleton brothers. She opens her eyes and yawns as she rolls onto her other side.

"Mmm… No…" She pulls the blanket over her head and curls up tightly. She simply lies there, attempt to return to sleep, when she hears the front door open. She peaks out from under her blanket and sees Sans walking into the house. He slowly makes his way towards the stairs. "Sans?" He freezes.

"oh, you're awake." He smiles at her. Nyssa sits up.

"I thought you were in bed too… Why were you outside?" He shrugs.

"i've had a lot on my mind, so i thought i'd go for a walk." Nyssa pulls the blanket over her shoulders as he talks.

"You wanna talk at all?"

"thanks, but i'm fine." He continues to the stairs.

"Sans…" He stops and looks at her again. Nyssa smiles at him. "Thanks for, you know, taking care of me and stuff while I was knocked out, and for letting me stay here… I don't think I've really thanked you before, so… Goodnight." She lies back down and returns to hiding under her blanket. Sans hesitates, then he starts up the stairs.

"no problem. sleep tight."

* * *

Nyssa and Papyrus are building snowmen around their house. Sans stands on the balcony above, drink some ketchup as he watches them.

"Hey, Papyrus, you should check that one's arm, it looks a little off." Nyssa says. Papyrus inspects his snowman.

"HMM, IT LOOKS FINE TO ME." He looks at Nyssa, just in time to have a snowball hit his face. She starts laughing, and so does Sans.

"bro, she totally got you." Sans says. Suddenly he's hit by a snowball on the side of the head. He glares at Nyssa, and she smirks at him as she forms another snowball in her hands.

"bro, I totally got you too." She says with a wink. Sans smirks.

"you really don't wanna start a snowball war with us."

"TOO LATE! WAR HAS COMMENCED!" Papyrus shouts as he starts lobbing snowballs at Nyssa. She runs behind the house, taking a hit on her arm as she goes. Nyssa laughs as she peaks around the corner and throws her snowball, hitting one of the snowmen next to Papyrus. "YOU CAN HIDE, BUT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL FIND YOU AND BURY YOU IN SNOW!"

"Not a chance!" Nyssa runs around the back of the house. She peaks back around the corner, checking for a follower, and suddenly is hit in the back of the head with a snowball. "Hey!" She spins around and sees Sans holding a snowball.

"you know, this is a fight that your magic is useless in. really, pap and i are probably the worst monsters for you to face." He tosses the snowball in the air as he speaks. Suddenly, a dozen snowballs form and rise up in the air behind Sans. Nyssa smiles nervously at him.

"Uh, S-Sans…" They fly at her, and she squeaks as she runs back around the corner, only to nearly run into Papyrus. She can't stop in time, so she drops to the ground, sliding under his legs. She then scrambles to her feet as he spins around.

"YOU CAN NOT ESCAPE ME!" Papyrus shouts as she throws a snowball at Nyssa, hitting her arm. She laughs as she runs back to the front of the house.

"Retreat! Retreat! Mission aborted!" She runs into the trees across from the from door.

"BROTHER, SHE'S GETTING AWAY!"

"well then we better catch her. you always wanted to capture a human, right pap?"

"YOU'RE RIGHT! TODAY WILL BE THE DAY THAT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, CAPTURE A HUMAN! THOUGH, I DO NOT THINK THIS WILL GET ME INTO THE ROYAL GUARD." Nyssa stops and hides behind a tree. Her breathing is heavy, but she's smiling. She can hear the snow crunching as Papyrus and Sans follow her into the trees.

"I think I bit off more than I can chew with both of them." She looks to her right and doesn't see anyone, so she starts running. Suddenly her body feels heavy. At the same time, she's lifted off the ground. "H-hey! Wh-what…" She sees Sans below her, his eye glowing. He smirks as he gently waves his hand back and forth, making her move from side to side.

"heh, you really thought you could run for it, didn't you?" Nyssa smiles at him.

"It was worth a shot."

"you know, once you start a fight, you have to finish it, one way or another. other wise your opponent will just come back for you."

"Great advice. Can you put me down now?" Nyssa reaches for a tree branch, but Sans pulls her away.

"nah. you should hang around for a bit. you know, you seem pretty light hearted lately. almost like you've been floating on cloud nine." Sans winks, and Nyssa groans.

"Stop! I can't get away! Don't be cruel!" Sans laughs as he lowers Nyssa back to the ground. "Thank you. Now…" A giant pile of snow falls onto Nyssa.

"you looked like you need to chill out for a minute." Nyssa glares at Sans.

"Sans!" She shouts. He laughs and leans against a tree.

"ah, what's wrong nyssa? you look upset. maybe you should cool off."

"I-I'm gonna m-murder you." Nyssa says as her body shivers. "I-I got snow in my clothes! Sans!" She shouts as she grabs her sweater and shakes it. "Cold, cold, cold, cold!" Sans laughs harder.

"AHA! THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAS FOUND YOU!" Papyrus shouts as he walks through the trees. He stops next to Sans. "OH MY! NYSSA, YOU LOOK LIKE A HUMAN POPSICLE. DID MY BROTHER GET YOU?"

"Yes he did!" Nyssa shouts.

"sh-she was too easy." Sans snickers. Nyssa quickly makes another snowball and hits Sans in the face. She smirks as she shivers. "oh, you still wanna go?" He and Nyssa glare at each other.

"NOW NOW, CALM DOWN. IT LOOKS LIKE NYSSA NEEDS TO GET INSIDE. WHY DON'T WE GET SOME HOT CHOCLATE? WHEN WE'RE ALL WARMED UP, WE CAN RESUME OUR SNOW WAR." The two don't break their gaze for a few moments, but eventually Nyssa sighs and looks away.

"S-sure. That s-sounds nice." She smiles at Papyrus.

"alright. cocoa sounds good right now." Sans says with a shrug.

"EXCELLENT! THEN LET US RETURN HOME!" Papyrus leads the march back. Nyssa giggles as she and Sans follow after him.

"At least Papyrus is n-nice to me." Nyssa says.

"hey, i'm nice. i could have buried you in snow, or dropped you instead of setting you down nicely."

"Yeah, yeah." They reach the house, and when they get inside Papyrus heads to the kitchen. Nyssa pulls her sweater off, revealing her plain white shirt underneath, and shakes her whole body. "I feel like a dog." She says with a laugh as she sets her sweater on the table. She pats the pet rock, then sits on the couch, next to Sans, who is already relaxing.

"so, have any regrets?" Sans looks at Nyssa.

"Only that I didn't hit you more." She smirks.

"yeah, not gonna happen. this is my home territory. good luck beating me." Nyssa shakes her head.

"So annoying." She grabs a blanket and curls up under it. Humming can be heard from the kitchen as Papyrus makes the cocoa. Nyssa looks at Sans. His eyes are closed, and he's leaning on his arm. "Sans…" He opens one eye and looks at her.

"what's up? you know, besides the ceiling." Nyssa smiles.

"I'm… Really glad to be here, with you guys. You know, despite your corny jokes."

"hey, my jokes aren't corny. they're more tomato-y. i don't eat corn all that much." Nyssa rolls her eyes. "i'm glad you're here too. i mean, it's hard not to be when you revived everyone, as well as stopped the person who kept resetting timelines." Nyssa pulls her blanket tighter.

"I… Didn't like my life outside. I mean, I even climbed the mountain to, you know… end it… But, you guys…" She smiles at Sans. "Those painful feelings and thoughts may never completely disappear, but you've all made me feel like I can actually be loved, and that I can do something good with my life." She looks down at the blanket. "Th-thank you… For everything." Sans looks surprised, but he smiles.

"you know, i wish i could remember that month you lived here before." He looks towards the kitchen. "i mean, you're still pretty quiet and shy with a lot of other monsters, but around pap and me you're almost an open book… must have been a good month if we grew that close that quick. still… you shouldn't put your worth in other people." He looks at Nyssa. "you should simply love yourself, no strings attached." Nyssa blushes and looks off to the side.

"U-uh… Th-thank… you…" She quietly stutters. Sans chuckles as he returns to relaxing as he and Nyssa wait for Papyrus' cocoa.


	12. Chapter 12

(PLEASE NOTE: I feel I need to point out that I write this story with the correct fonts, including the font for your newest character in this chapter, buuuut…. Fanfiction doesn't keep these fonts, so I italicized this to show he isn't speaking in a normal manner that nyssa would initially understand. So bear with that. Even though you can read his font, as I write this I can't because its not exactly in english, and nyssa doesn't understand it at first either.)

* * *

Nyssa smiles as she twirls her umbrella, sending water droplets flying. She closes the umbrella, then puts it away with the others. As she continues on, she hears music gently playing from a statue up ahead. As she walks past she hums along to the tune. She hears talking, and peaks into the piano room to see Undyne and Shyren.

"That's right! Ha! You're getting really good at playing the piano!" Undyne says with a big smile. Shyren sheepishly smiles back at her. Nyssa continues on.

"It's nice seeing them play again." Nyssa says to herself. "Everything is finally right… I really hope I can protect this." She continues her slow trek through Waterfall, until she spots a telescope that makes her smile. "That annoying thing." She shakes her head. "I still hate Sans for that." She walks on, laughing quietly to herself. She starts humming, and closes her eyes for a moment. When she opens them again, she stops walking. "Did… Did something change?" She looks back behind herself, then forward once again. "It seems… longer." She walks down the hallway, and stops again in front of a doorway. "This is… New." She peaks in, and sees a black figure in the middle of the room. It looks at her. The face is broken, and stuck with a shattered smile. Nyssa's heart stops for a moment, but she walks in. "H-hello."

" _...HELLO..._ " The man speaks as his hands move, however the sound is gibberish to Nyssa.

"Uh, I… I didn't… U-Under…." Nyssa struggles to speak. "A-are you okay? Wh-what are you d-doing alone?" He doesn't respond. Nyssa hesitantly raises her hand as her heal button appears in front of her. The green light reaches out and covers the man. He looks at her in surprise. "S-sorry. I thought it wouldn't hurt to heal you." She watches the cracks in the man's face shrink, but the light disappears before he's made whole. Still, the man has regained more of a normal shape. "It… It didn't…" Nyssa frowns. She hits the button again, and once again the man becomes more whole, but the light again vanishes without completing the work.

" _PLEASE, WAIT A MOMENT._ " He continues to move his hands as he speaks, but still, Nyssa doesn't understand him.

"I wish I knew sign language." Nyssa sighs. "I-I'm sorry. I don't… I don't understand what you're saying. The man pauses, then he holds his hand out like Nyssa does. "You want me to keep going?" He nods. "Alright. Whatever is wrong, I can fix it, even if it takes a while." She holds her hand out again, and again, and again. After several healing sessions the cracks are all but gone. Nyssa is breathing heavily. "Wh-what in the w-world is w-wrong th-that it t-takes so m-much?"

" _IT'S A LONG STORY._ " Nyssa pauses. This time, his words aren't as muddled to her. She looks into the man's eyes.

"Uh, I… I think I can, m-maybe, understand you."

" _THAT IS GOOD. YOUR ABILITY TO HEAL IS VERY USEFUL. EVEN UNDER SUCH STRANGE CIRCUMSTANCES AS MINE. WHAT IS YOUR NAME?_ "

"My name?" He nods, and she smiles. "Uh, m-my name is Nyssa." She holds her hand up. "What's yours?" Suddenly, before she touches the button, her hand is yanked to the side.

"his name is gaster…" Nyssa looks to see Sans holding onto her wrist, glaring at Gaster. "i thought i was done with him, but i guess it was only a matter of time until you found him."

"Sans, wh-why are you s-stopping me? He still needs to… to be healed." Nyssa glances from Sans to Gaster.

" _IT'S OKAY... SANS AND I HAVE A HISTORY TOGETHER. THIS IS... EPECTED._ " Nyssa shakes her head.

"I-it can't be a-anything that means I c-can't heal you." She attempts to look into Sans' eyes, but they're blank. "S… Sans?" He lets go of her wrist.

"fine. you're almost done anyways, so it's kinda pointless to stop you now. just, keep him away from papyrus." Sans turns and walks out of the room. Nyssa watches him leave, then she looks at Gaster.

"What… What happened between you t-two? Y-you're definitely not n-normal." She holds her hand out, and once again Gaster is covered by the light. As it disappears, Nyssa is finally able to completely see him. Gaster is tall, slender, and wearing black pants and overcoat with a white turtleneck underneath. The shirt has slim black lines running down it every couple of inches.

" _AS I SAID, IT S A LONG STORY. FOR NOW... THANK YOU. I'VE BEEN TRAPPED IN THAT STATE FOR MANY YEARS. THERE ARE MANY THINGS I NEED TO DO, AND MANY FENCES THAT NEED MENDING._ "

"Well, if you kn-know what you need t-to do, th-then I should g-go home and rest." She smiles at him. "I-it was nice to m-meet you, Gaster." She waves as she walks out of the room, continuing her walk towards Snowdin. "Sans! I-if you're s-still around I-I could use a sh-short cut!" She shouts.

"yeah, i'm still here…" Sans hand waves from around a corner. Nyssa smiles sleepily.

"M-mind taking me home?" She hears him sigh as he walks from around the corner.

"sure. i think i'd rather be home right now anyways." With that the two disappear, and reappear in Sans' room. Nyssa yawns as she turns towards the door. However, she stops and looks at Sans.

"Hey… What d-do you have against that guy?" Sans looks her in the eye.

"gaster… there aren't a lot of pleasant things i could say about him. a lot happened in the past, but…" He half smiles. "you're too much like papyrus, you know that? you've got a big heart… no matter what i told you, you'd probably have healed him still." He shuts his eyes a moment, then he half opens them and looks at the floor, his smile gone. "maybe i'll tell you another time. i'm not really feeling up to it right now."

"Okay." Nyssa smiles at him, and he smiles back at her. "I'm g-gonna go to sleep now. H-he took a lot of energy." She walks towards the door. "I-I'm stealing Papyrus' bed for now. I d-don't think he'll mind."

"probably not. it's the middle of the day, so i doubt he'll even know."

"good night." She walks out, shutting the door behind her. Sans sighs as he sits on his bed and looks out the window.

"…night…"


	13. Chapter 13

Nyssa sits on a ledge in Hotland, her legs dangling as she looks at the core, watching it work. Her sweater is tied around her waist, leaving her in her plain shirt and her jeans. Her phone buzzes, and she pulls it out of her pocket.

"Oh, it's Sans. Knock… No." She groans as she falls back so she's lying on the ground. "No, no, no!" She shouts. For a moment she lies there, then she replies. "Who's there?" She smiles as she awaits the reply.

"You're pal…" Nyssa frowns and sits up. She looks around, but she doesn't see anyone. She does spot a little green vine, peaking up out of the ground.

"Wh… What?" She slowly gets to her feet, then she starts walking back towards Waterfall. "I-I'm just hearing things, probably." Her phone buzzes, and she looks at it. "Harry? Harry who?" She giggles as she replies. After a few moments the reply comes. "Harry up and get home." She laughs. "Okay, that was lame." She shakes her head. As she walks she goes past Alphys' lab. She stops and looks at it, then walks over to it. "You'll have to wait, Sans." She knocks on the door.

"C-c-coming!" When the door opens, Alphys is standing there, and behind her is Gaster. Nyssa looks at him in surprise.

"O-oh, hello there." She waves at him, then looks at Alphys. "Sorry if I interrupted something. I just thought I'd say hi since I was going past."

"N-no problem. D-Doctor Gaster and I were just discussing my… work…" She looks down. "Oh, u-uh, I… I h-heard that the families are all doing well."

"Yeah." Nyssa nods. "They all seem to be pretty happy. I've gotten to talk with some of them, and they're not upset with you, in case you were worried." Alphys smiles up at her.

"Th-thank you."

"Well, Sans wants me to go home, so I'm gonna take off. Like I said, I just wanted to check in and say hi." Nyssa gives them a quick wave. "I'll talk to you later Alphys. Bye Gaster." She turns and starts walking away.

" _NYSSA, WAIT A MOMENT._.." Nyssa stops and looks at him. " _ALPHYS AND I ARE ABOUT DONE WITH WHAT WE WERE DOING, AND I WOULD LIKE TO ACCOMPANY YOU AND VISIT MY SONS._ "

"Oh, um, alright." Nyssa shrugs. "I don't mind the company."

" _I ENJOYED SPEAKING WITH YOU, ALPHYS. AS FAR AS YOUR WORK WE WILL TALK MORE. I HAVEN T HAD THE CHANCE TO SPEAK WITH ASGORE YET, BUT WE WILL SEE WHAT HAPPENS._ "

"O-okay." Alphys quietly replies. Gaster walks out, and together he and Nyssa begin the walk back to Snowdin. Nyssa glances at Gaster every now and again.

"Um… Gaster... So, wh-why were you in such a weird state before?" She quietly asks. He looks at her, and gives her a slight smile.

" _IT'S HARD TO EXPLAIN. SOME OF MY WORK WENT WRONG, AND AS A RESULT, MY BODY AND SOUL WERE SHATTERED. YOUR ABILITY TO HEAL IS IMPRESSIVE. I'VE HEARD OF YOUR WORK DOWN HERE, AND I'M VERY CURIOUS AS TO THIS POWER YOU WEILD._ "

"I don't really understand it myself." Nyssa looks at her hand. "Sans has tried to explain some things, and I guess I sort of get it, but… Still. Magic, power, those are just stories on the surface. It was hard to accept it as a real thing when I fell down here. Even now, sometimes I wonder if this is just a dream." Gaster chuckles.

" _IT IS HARD TO GO FROM A WORLD WITHOUT MAGIC TO A WORLD LIKE OURS. STILL, YOU SEEM TO BE DOING WELL DOWN HERE. YOU'VE MADE MANY FRIENDS, AND HELPED MANY PEOPLE._ " The two walk in silence for a few moments.

"…Why does Sans hate you so much?" She looks up at Gaster, but he doesn't respond. "Gaster?" As he raises his hands, he begins to speak.

" _IN THE PAST... I MADE MISTAKES, JUST AS ALPHYS DID. I HAD TWO PRECIOUS SONS, AND I MAY HAVE HURT THEM. SANS, HE WAS OLD ENOUGH TO UNDERSTAND AND REMEMBER. I'M SURE HE HOLDS A GRUDGE OVER WHAT I DID. IT S BEEN MANY YEARS SINCE THE INCIDENT, AND IN THAT TIME, AS I VE WATCHED OVER THE MANY MONSTERS HERE, I VE HAD TIME TO THINK TO REGRET. I WANTED TO HELP MONSTERS, BUT I WENT TO FAR WITH MY WORK._ "

"Everyone messes up." Nyssa smiles at him. "The monsters have forgiven Alphys for what she did, so… I would think that, given some time and apologies, what you did could be forgiven as well." Gaster smiles back at her.

" _THANK YOU. I'M NOT CONVINCED IT'LL BE THAT SIMPLE._ " Nyssa shrugs.

"Well… We'll see. After what I've experienced down here, it's hard to imagine anything is impossible anymore… Also, why is it… I mean… When you first spoke to me, I couldn't understand a single thing you said. Even now, it sounds… Strange, but…" She trails off. "A-and you use your hands when you speak. It's like sign language. Just… It's really strange."

" _US SKELETONS SPEAK DIFFERENTLY. IF YOU LISTEN CAREFULLY, YOU MAY REALIZE THAT SANS AND PAPYRUS SOUND DIFFERENT FROM OTHER MONSTERS. HOWEVER, MAGIC HELPS TO BRIDGE THE GAP. AS FOR MY HANDS, WELL, MY WAY OF SPEAKING IS ADMITTEDLY EXTREME, SO I SPEAK IN HANDS AS WELL. I VE BEEN ABLE TO WATCH OVER MY SONS, THOUGH THAT S ALL, AND IF YOU LOOK, YOU MAY NOTICE THAT NOW AND AGAIN THEY WILL SPEAK IN HANDS._ " Nyssa frowns and looks forward.

"I… Hadn't noticed…" Nyssa sighs. "Well, it'll be cool when I do notice it." She smiles once again.

" _YOU ARE QUITE... OPTIMISTIC._ " Nyssa looks up at Gaster in surprise.

"A-am I?" She looks down, blushing slightly. "I've… I've never thought of myself as an optimist. Especially not with… well… it doesn't matter." She looks up at him. "Alphys called you Doctor Gaster…"

" _BEFORE ALPHYS, I WAS THE ROYAL SCIENTIST. I WAS THE ONE WHO DESIGNED THE CORE. HOWEVER, I HAD A FEW OTHER PROJECTS AS WELL. IT WAS ONE OF THESE THAT CAUSE MY BODY TO BE SHATTERED._ "

"I always liked science, but I wasn't the best at it." Nyssa puts her hands in her pockets. "I just don't have the patience to sit down and do all the little things. Then again, I have the patience to paint, so I guess that's a little bit of a contradiction." She giggles.

" _YOU PAINT?_ " Gaster looks surprised. Nyssa nods. " _I WOULD LIKE TO SEE YOUR PAINTINGS. WE DON'T HAVE MUCH ART DOWN HERE, NOT RIGHT NOW._ " Nyssa blushes.

"I-I haven't painted anything while I've been down here… It's not that great anyways." Nyssa says with a blush.

" _PERHAPS YOU SHOULD START PAINTING. I'M SURE IT'LL BE RECIEVED WELL._ _" Nyssa smiles as she looks at the ground._

 _"_ _Maybe… Well, we'll see."_

* * *

Nyssa sips some water as she sits between Sans and Gaster on the couch. She can feel the hateful gaze from Sans, aimed both at her and the man next to her.

"THIS IS STILL SO EXCITING! I HARDLY REMEMBER YOU!" Papyrus says as he looks at Gaster while standing in front of the group. "ARE YOU SURE YOU AREN'T HUNGRY? MY SPAGHETTI IS QUITE SPECTACULAR!" As he speaks he moves his hands, like Gaster.

" _THANK YOU PAPYRUS, BUT I'M NOT HUNGRY RIGHT NOW. PERHAPS ANOTHER TIME. I CERTAINLY WOULD LIKE TO TRY IT._ " Nyssa starts to smile, but a chill runs down her back. She glances at Sans, and his glare hasn't let up.

"WELL, I'M HAPPY TO HAVE YOU BACK. I'M NOT SURE WHY YOU WERE GONE, BUT I'M HAPPY YOU RETURNED. HAVING A FATHER IS AMAZING!"

"hey, pap, in all this excitement, didn't you forget that you're supposed to recalibrate your puzzles today?" Sans asks.

"YOU'RE RIGHT! I'M SORRY, FATHER, BUT I MUST GO! WE WILL CATCH UP ANOTHER TIME! I CAN'T SHIRK MY DUTIES!" Papyrus runs out of the house.

"…He recalibrated them yesterday." Nyssa quietly says.

"he loves working on his puzzles. he'll never realize he doesn't need to do anything today." Sans stands with his hands in his pockets. "well, i think i'm gonna go to grillby's. which means all uninvited guests need to leave." He glares at Gaster. "and the invited ones need to make sure they don't bring strangers home without permission." He glares at Nyssa.

"Sans, stop this!" Nyssa stands. "I…" She starts to speak, but the cold gaze from Sans makes her hesitate. "Please… I-I don't know what happened, but… But this can't be what you want."

"you're right." Sans smiles and closes his eyes. Nyssa smiles as well. "i wanted him to stay missing." Her smile disappears. Sans looks at Gaster, then he turns and walks to the door.

"Sans!" Nyssa grabs his hand, but he yanks it away.

"i told you to keep him away!" Sans shouts, surprising both Nyssa and Gaster. "i haven't forgotten what he did to me!"

"Well I don't know what he did! I don't know why you're so upset!" Nyssa shouts back.

"he hasn't told you? maybe you should ask. he loved his experiments so much he'd sacrifice his own children to move forward, so i'm sure he'd be happy to explain the work he cared so much about to you." Nyssa looks to Gaster, but he doesn't look at her. Rather, he looks at Sans. Slowly, he gets to his feet.

" _...SANS... I AM SORRY. I AM TRULY SORRY FOR THE PAIN I CAUSED. I... DO NOT EXPECT FORGIVENESS. EVEN WITHOUT IT, YOU ARE STILL MY SON, AND I..._ "

"i don't wanna hear it!" Sans shouts. He looks at Nyssa, his left eye glowing. "when his experiments with controlling time and timelines started to fail, he turned to his work on soul and the barrier. in order to work on souls, you need souls to mess with, and that's exactly what he did to me, and to papyrus. i thought i could trust my dad, my hero, but in the end he turned me into an experiment. when he started messing with papyrus…" Sans shuts his eyes and takes in a deep breath, then slowly lets it out. He opens his eyes again. "i took papyrus and ran away for a few days. he disappeared, so we went back home, and stayed there for a few years. no one ever came to the lab, so it was fine. but when asgore finally got a new royal scientist we had to leave. that's when we came to snowdin… i wanted to forget. papyrus, he hardly saw dad, so he wasn't too bothered by it. but now i have to deal with this again. this isn't what i wanted."

"Sans…" Nyssa looks down, then she looks at Gaster.

" _...WHEN YOU LEFT, I RETURNED TO THE TIME PROJECT... THE MACHINE WAS RUNNING WHILE I WAS ADJUSTING SOME SETTINGS. I... FELL INTO IT. IT WAS IMPERFECT THOUGH, AS YOU KNOW, AND WHEN MATTER ENTERED IT, IT MALFUNCTIONED. MY BODY AND SOUL WERE TAKEN FROM THIS WORLD, AND THE MACHINE ITSELF RIPPED APPART UNTIL VITAL PIECES WERE REMOVED, FINALLY FORCING IT TO SHUT DOWN._ "

"…but you still came back." Sans sighs and looks from Gaster to Nyssa. "listen, i'm not someone with a lot of patience. forgiveness and caring and all that, it takes too much energy for someone as lazy as me. papyrus though, he believes in everyone, even when it kills him. i won't say this again. if anything happens to my baby brother, you both will have a very, very bad time." With that he finally walks out. Nyssa sighs.

"I… I didn't realize things were like that…" She looks at Gaster. As he speaks, his hands move slowly.

" _I... DID NOT EXPECT ANYTHING MORE THAN THIS. SANS WAS A GOOD CHILD, AND HE LOVED SCIENCE. HE WORKED WITH ME, FROM THE VERY MOMENT HE COULD WALK. I THEN BETRAYED HIM, AND TREATED HIM LIKE A TEST SUBJECT. I HAD NO ONE ELSE, AND MY CHILDREN WERE EASILY ACCESIBLE AND, WHEN ASKED IF THEY WANTED TO HELP ME, VERY EAGER... AS I SAID, I HAVE MANY REGRETS, AND HAVE HAD YEARS TO THINK ABOUT THEM._ " Nyssa looks at the front door.

"I… I wish I could do something to change this." She looks down at the floor. Gaster smiles at her.

" _YOU ARE VERY KIND. DO NOT TROUBLE YOURSELF WITH MY PAINS. MY SINS ARE MY OWN TO ATONE FOR._ " Nyssa looks at Gaster with a halfhearted smile.

"My place in this world has been based on my ability to fix things, to help people… I… I feel kind of at a loss now." She looks at the door again. "Since I've come here, I've finally found a pain I don't know if I can heal..."


	14. Chapter 14

Nyssa stands outside Sans' bedroom door. She simply stands there, staring at it, for several minutes. Finally, she reaches up and knocks.

"…go away nyssa…" She half smiles.

"Hey, you can talk." She hears a bang against the door and jumps back. "S-sorry. Just trying to make a joke. I thought you liked those." She waits, but no response. "Sans, its been a week. You can't keep avoiding me. I live here."

"i can change that."

"Let's not." She steps towards the door and grabs the handle, trying to open it. It doesn't turn. "Unlock the door. Come on Sans, please." He doesn't respond. Nyssa sighs and walks towards the stairs. She stops when she reaches them and looks back, but nothing changes. She starts to step down, but she stops again, then looks at Papyrus' door. She quickly makes her way into his room, then over to his window. "Pap, why must your computer be here?" She mumbles as she gets on his table and opens the window. "I'm not this skinny. Seriously." She carefully pushes the computer over a few inches, until finally she has enough room to get past and out the window. She falls out though, landing face first in the snow on the deck. "Ow…" She gets to her feet and dusts the snow off, then she makes her way to Sans' window. She peaks in, and sees Sans is laying on his bed, pillow over his face. Carefully, she lifts his window. As she does, she hears a quiet snore coming from Sans. When the window is open, she slowly climbs through it. However, her foot catches, and she ends up falling in, landing half on the floor, half on the bed.

"what?" Sans sits up and looks at Nyssa as she rubs her head, while her legs hang hopeless in the air.

"Uh, hi." She waves, and Sans glares at her.

"you wanna die, don't you?"

"Given my past and what I've told you, that's probably a waste of a question." She pulls herself off the bed, so she's sitting on the floor. "You know, it takes a lot of energy to break into your room. Papyrus doesn't make it easy to get out of his window."

"he doesn't like coming out here. now, get out."

"Come on Sans, I…" Nyssa's cut off as Sans' eye begins to glow, and her body suddenly becomes heavy. Sans throws his hand towards the door, and she's sent flying, until she hits the wall next to it. Nyssa bites her lip hard enough to make it bleed.

"you know, i was actually happy for a little bit. as far as i knew, my problems were over. then you had to go and bring back the one person i hate. now, i could live with that. you… have been that sort of person, like pap. but then you brought him to my house!" His hand drops, and she feels her body become lighter. Sans closes his eyes. "i don't want to forgive you, not when you were told to keep him away." He opens his eyes and glares at her. "and from what i hear you telling papyrus, you seem to think there's some way to fix my relationship with him. it isn't gonna happen." Nyssa sits there, looking at Sans.

"I…" She sighs and looks away. "Sans… I-I didn't mean to upset you. I promise, I don't want anything bad to happen to anyone. Not you, not Papyrus…" She looks at him again. "I… I have an idea of what happened to you, but… Just an idea. I…" She rubs the back of her neck as she looks down at her feet. "I just want people to be happy, you know? This place is filled with happy monsters, and I… I want to be a part of that, and help it stay that way."

"sometimes you need to mind your own business." Nyssa stands and looks at Sans.

"Sans… you… d-don't really hate me, do you?" She quietly asks. Sans hesitates, then he sighs.

"i'm really upset with you, but… no. i… don't think it's possible for me to hate you. i know you're just trying to help. just, don't get involved anymore. seeing my dad again… it's a bit too much." He lies back down and grabs his pillow, putting it back over his face. Nyssa sighs and grabs the door handle, then she stops and looks back at Sans. She smiles and walks over, sitting on the ground next to his bed. He pulls the pillow away and looks at her. "what are you doing?"

"Well, since you're so stubborn, I figured I'd see if I couldn't be the same." She leans back against the bed and smiles at him. Sans studies her a moment, then he drops the pillow back onto his face.

"whatever. just don't wake me up." She giggles and shuts her eyes.

"Alright." Nyssa sinks down and leans on the wall as well. Sans lifts the pillow slightly and looks at her. He half-smiles, then shuts his eyes and lets the pillow fall back into place.

* * *

Nyssa yawns as she sits up. "Mmm…" She looks around, but there's no sign of anyone. She then sees a paper on the floor next to the couch. "Hmm?" She reaches down and picks it up. On the back of it is a note. "Nyssa, go next door." She stands and stretches, then looks at the note again, before putting on her shoes and walking out of the house. "Next door… The guest house?" She walks over to the guest house and stops in front of the door. "I wonder…" She smiles. "Probably." She opens the door and walks in. "Hello?"

"SURPRISE!" Papyrus shouts. It's only him and Sans inside, but the room is filled with some basic decorations and furniture.

"Papyrus, Sans…" Nyssa feels tears fill her eyes. "You two…" She quickly wipes the tears away. "Th-this is for me, r-right?"

"OF COURSE! WHEN I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAD THE IDEA TO TURN THIS GUEST HOUSE INTO YOUR OWN ROOM, SANS WAS ALL FOR IT! NOW YOU CAN HAVE YOUR PRIVACY AND DON'T NEED TO SLEEP ON THE COUCH!" Nyssa closes the door and walks into the full room. She looks around, taking in the scene. It's not as colorful as last time, but she still feels her heart leaping for joy.

"we're also planning on attaching it properly to the house." Sans adds. "that way you don't have to walk outside just to get some breakfast. then again, there's a whole room for you to use as you'd like." He looks at the door to Nyssa's right. She looks at it in surprise.

"I-I didn't see that." She walks over to it.

"be kinda weird to have a random hallway and nothing in the space next to it." Nyssa opens the door, but the light is off inside. She reaches in and finds a switch to flip. When the light comes on, it reveals a small, slender room that is empty, except for the easel and box with the words 'ART STUFF FOR NYSSA' written on it.

"I… Is that…" Nyssa simply stares at the easel.

"YES, THAT'S FOR YOU AS WELL! YOU SEE, WHEN I WENT TO WATERFALL THE OTHER DAY, I RAN INTO MY FATHER, AND WHILE WE WERE TALKING, HE MENTIONED YOUR LOVE OF PAINTING. THIS WAS QUITE A SURPRISE. BUT SANS THOUGHT IT WOULD BE A GREAT IDEA TO GET THIS AS A LITTLE GIFT, TO CELEBRATE YOUR BEING A PART OF OUR FAMILY!" Nyssa turns and looks at them, blushing.

"F… Family?" She squeaks out.

"OF COURSE! YOU'RE LIKE A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY! WHY, WE MIGHT AS WELL CALL YOU SISTER AT THIS POINT! AND DON'T WORRY! SINCE I AM NOW YOUR BIG BROTHER, I WILL ALWAYS AND FOREVER PROTECT YOU FROM ANY DANGERS THAT MAY APPEAR! FOR I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AND NO ONE WILL HARM MY FRIENDS OR FAMILY!" Nyssa feels a tear roll down her cheek, and then another, and another. "NYSSA, WHY ARE YOU CRYING? DID I SAY SOMETHING WRONG?" Papyrus looks at Sans, but he shakes his head.

"N-no, just…" Nyssa smiles at them. "I… I wasn't expecting… Th-this is so sudden. I-I'm… I'm so happy!"

"EXCELLENT! I'M HAPPY TOO! I COULD ALMOST CRY AS WELL! B-BUT I DON'T CRY! IT'S QUITE HARD FOR SKELETONS TO CRY AFTER ALL."

"R-right." Nyssa giggles. "Papyrus, Sans… Thank you, both of you." She looks around the room, then back at them. "I… I've never felt so loved with anyone else. You two… You didn't have to let me stay with you, but you've gone so far to make me feel welcome. I…" She wipes some more tears away. "I'm so glad I fell down here. Climbing Mount Ebott, despite all the problems, was the best decision I ever made."

"well, we're glad you came. after all, if you hadn't shown up, well, i'd be pretty lonely right now." He looks up at Papyrus, then back at Nyssa. "of course, you're a bit of a weird addition to our family. you aren't exactly a skeleton."

"Given where I come from, I don't think you should be calling me weird." She smirks slightly. "Really though, thank you two." She swiftly walks over and hugs Papyrus. He hugs her back. She then hugs Sans, which requires for her to kneel down a bit, and he hugs her back as well, though he's not as quick or enthusiastic about it as Papyrus.

"WELL, NOW WE NEED TO THROW YOU A HOUSE WARMING PARTY. OR, WOULD IT BE A ROOM WARMING PARTY?" Nyssa giggles.

"A party sounds fun, for whatever reason." Nyssa looks around again. "I… Think it'd be great to have some friends over. It's still strange having some."

"WELL YOU HAVE PLENTY HERE. I'LL GO AHEAD AND CALL THEM ALL OVER RIGHT NOW!" Papyrus runs out of the room.

"P-Papyrus, wait!" Nyssa shouts, but he's already gone. She sighs, but still smiles. "I-It's a bit sudden to invite people over.'

"heh, he's just excited." Sans looks at the door. "he really has been a lot happier since you've been around. i think he likes having a friend to run around and do puzzles with. i like that i get to sleep without him constantly nagging me." He winks at Nyssa, and she giggles. "nyssa… really, even if we haven't always seen eye to eye, i'm glad you came." Nyssa blushes.

"Th-thanks Sans…"

"say, if you lived here a while in another timeline, did you know this would happen?"

"Sort of." Nyssa shrugs. "I mean, things haven't happened exactly the same, no. But yeah, you guys did something like this before. Except it was a big party, and…" She runs her fingers through her hair. "I mean, I hadn't found Gaster before, so he wasn't involved at all. Also, I only barely got to see this place. It was when the surprise party here started before that everything reset the first time."

"well, at least you don't have to worry about it disappearing this time." Nyssa looks over at the art station in the other room.

"No… I-I can relax now… This is definitely my home now, and no one can take it away anymore."


	15. Chapter 15

Nyssa giggles as she gently dabs her brush into some paint. She reaches out to her canvas and continues to spread the paint out over both blank canvas, and other layers of paint.

"knock knock." She looks at the door to her art room and sees Sans standing in the doorway.

"Hey." She smiles at him. "What's up?"

"just wondering what you're up to, since you didn't come over for breakfast today." He walks over and looks at her painting. "hey, that's our house, isn't it?"

"Yep." Nyssa continues to paint as she speaks. "I was wondering what would be the best thing to paint first down here, and decided that there wasn't anything better than my new home." She dips her brush in some more paint. "To be honest, I'd rather be outside, but paint and snow don't really mix well."

"i'm pretty sure they mix really well, that's why you shouldn't paint in the snow."

"Don't you sass me." She points her paintbrush at Sans. "I'll paint you."

"oh no, how will i ever recover?" Nyssa shakes her head as she continues her work. "you must have upset yourself. you seem to be wearing almost as much paint as the painting."

"Getting set up is usually pretty messy for me." Nyssa says with a light laugh. "I always end up spilling paint on myself. It's fine though." She pulls her brush back and looks at the colorful canvas. Though it lacks some details, the image is over the snow covered house, including her piece of it. "Painting is about having fun, so I don't mind getting a bit messy."

"well, just don't forget to come visit us now and again once you're a famous painter." Sans says as he turns to leave.

"You can't get rid of me that easily." He stops and looks at her again. Nyssa giggles and continues painting. He chuckles.

"heh. i must canvas, you're a lot of fun to have around." Nyssa laughs.

"That was bad! Get out!" Sans laughs as he walks out, leaving Nyssa to continue giggling and painting. She switches brushes, using a finer one, and dips it in white paint. "Alright, time for some of the details."

* * *

"IT'S QUITE SOMETHING. SHE REALLY IS GREAT AT PAINTING! PERHAPS I SHOULD LEARN FROM HER. CERTAINLY, I CAN MASTER SUCH AN ART!" Nyssa blushes as she listens to Papyrus and Gaster talk while the three of them eat some nicecream in the echo flower room.

"I-it's just a painting." Nyssa mumbles.

"NONSENSE! YOU PAINTED OUR HOME, AND YOU EVEN PAINTED SANS AND I IN FRONT OF IT. YOUR WORK IS BEAUTIFUL!" Papyrus cheerfully says.

" _WHAT DO YOU PLAN TO PAINT NEXT?_ " Gaster asks.

"Uh…" Nyssa looks at her nicecream. "I-I don't really know. I mean, there are so many pretty places down here. I-I should probably, you know, just go for a walk and then, I don't know, m-maybe something'll really catch my attention."

"THEN I SHALL ACCOMPANY YOU ON YOUR WALK. IF I'M TO LEARN THE ART OF PAINTING, THEN I WILL ENSURE I STUDY EVERYTHING ABOUT IT, INCLUDING YOUR METHODS FOR INSPIRATION!" Nyssa giggles.

"Alright. I think that sounds nice." Nyssa takes a bite of her nicecream.

" _PAPYRUS, HAVE YOU HAD ANY NEWS REGARDING YOUR ENTRY INTO THE ROYAL GUARD?_ " Gaster asks before taking a bite of his nicecream.

"WELL, NO… TO BE QUITE HONEST, I HAVEN'T ASKED UNDYNE ABOUT IT LATELY. SINCE I SUFFERED A DEFEAT, I FIGURED I NEEDED MORE TRAINING."

"Well, you'll get in. I'm sure you're super strong."

"OF COURSE! I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS, THERE IS NO CHALLENGE TO GREAT FOR ME! THOUGH IT MAY TAKE SOME TIME, I SHALL JOIN THE ROYAL GUARD, THERE IS NO DOUBT IN THAT!"

"Say, don't you have something to do with Undyne today?"

"YES! YOU REMEMBERED! THOUGH, IT ISN'T FOR ANOTHER HOUR STILL."

"Alright. Just don't be late." Nyssa takes another bite of her nicecream.

" _TELL ME, WHERE IS SANS RIGHT NOW? I KNOW HE... ISN'T INTERESTED IN SPEAKING WITH ME, BUT..._ "

"I think he's in Hotland right now." Nyssa pokes at an echo flower. "He said his hotdogs have been in such high demand that he has to sell hotcats instead. I'm slightly concerned. Hotcats isn't exactly a food I'm familiar with."

"YES, HIS HOTCATS ARE… STRANGE. HOWEVER, IF HE'S ACTUALLY WORKING FOR ONCE, I'M HAPPY." They continue to talk, until suddenly a phone starts ringing.

" _I'M SORRY. ASGORE AND I HAVE BEEN SPEAKING QUITE OFTEN. THIS IS PROBABLY HIM._ " Gaster pulls a phone out of his pocket and answers. " _HELLO... AH, I AM... YES, THAT SHOULD BE FINE, I SUPPOSE._ _"_ Nyssa and Papyrus look at each other. " _YES. I WILL SEE YOU SOON._ " He hangs up, then looks at them. " _I'M SORRY. IT SEEMS ASGORE WISHES TO SPEAK WITH ME. I HAVE ENJOYED SPENDING TIME WITH YOU BOTH. THANK YOU._ "

"It's nice speaking with you Gaster. We'll catch up another time."

"YES. ANOTHER TIME THEN. IF THE KING IS CALLING THEN YOU MUST ANSWER! THOUGH, YOU ALREADY ANSWERED HIS CALL. BUT YOU MUST STILL GO TO HIM!" Nyssa giggles.

" _I'LL SPEAK WITH YOU BOTH LATER. GOODBYE._ " Gaster waves as he turns and walks away. Nyssa and Papyrus begin their own trek back towards Snowdin.

"MY FATHER IS SUCH AN AMAZING SKELETON. TO BE HONEST, I DON'T CARE FOR ALL THE SCIENCE STUFF, NOT LIKE SANS DOES. BUT HE REFUSES TO GIVE HIM A CHANCE."

"Well… It sounds like your dad made some big mistakes. It'll take time, but I still believe Sans'll come around."

"I HOPE SO. I DON'T REMEMBER MUCH ABOUT MY DAD. FOR MOST OF MY MEMORIES, IT WAS JUST SANS AND I. WE USED TO LIVE IN THIS BIG, STRANGE BUILDING. HE WOULD SOMETIMES DISAPPEAR DOWN AN ELEVATOR, BUT HE NEVER LET ME GO DOWN THERE. I STARTED TO GO OUT FAR MORE, AND THE FIRST THING I DID WAS RUN INTO UNDYNE IN WATERFALL. AFTER A FEW YEARS, SANS TOLD ME WE HAD TO FIND A NEW HOME. I SUGGESTED WATERFALL, BUT HE SAID HE WANTED TO GO A LITTLE FURTHER, AND WE ENDED UP MOVING TO SNOWDIN. I LOVE MY HOME AND MY BROTHER, BUT I HAVE WANTED TO HAVE A BIGGER FAMILY AGAIN."

"Well, now you're getting that." Nyssa giggles.

"SAY, MAYBE YOU SHOULD JOIN THE TRAINING SESSION TODAY. UNDYNE HAS CHANGED THEM. BEFORE, WE MOSTLY COOKED. BUT SINCE EVERYTHING HAS HAPPENED, SHE'S BEGUN TO DO A LOT MORE FIGHTING AND PHYSICAL WORK."

"O-oh, uh…" Nyssa smiles nervously. "I-I… I'm not a, you know, fighter… I don't…"

"IT'LL BE GREAT FOR YOU! LET'S GO HOME AND GET CHANGED INTO SOMETHING WORK OUT APPROPRIATE!" He grabs her hand and starts running.

"P-Papyrus!" Nyssa shouts as she struggles to keep up with the excited skeleton. "Slow down! Pap!"

"WE HAVE TO HURRY. IF WE GET TO UNDYNE'S EARLY THEN WE CAN GET IN EXTRA PRACTICE!" Nyssa groans.

"You're gonna kill me…"

* * *

Nyssa's breathing is heavy as she leans back against Undyne's house, watching as Undyne and Papyrus battle each other.

"I'm not going easy on you Papyrus! You better keep up!"

"THE GREAT PAPYRUS CAN NEVER FAIL! SO DON'T EVEN THINK OF HOLDING BACK!" A spear appears in Undyne's hand, and bones behind Papyrus.

"Oh, don't worry." She throws her spear, and Papyrus blocks it with a small wall of bones. However, Undyne is running right behind it. She slides under the floating bones as another spear appears in her hand. She quickly jumps back onto her feet and swipes at Papyrus. A bone appears in his hand, and he blocks the swipe. The two go back and forth, exchanging blows. Nyssa watches, fascinated by the passionate battle.

"NYEH HEH HEH, YOU THINK YOU HAVE ME ON THE ROPES, DON'T YOU?" Papyrus suddenly jumps back and a wall of bones, aimed at Undyne, appear between the two fighters. At random, one bone after another shoots out at Undyne. She hits some away, and dodges others. The bones move faster and faster, and so does Undyne.

"They're… scary." Nyssa quietly says to herself.

"Yeah. Annoyingly hard to kill." Nyssa jumps and looks around, but she doesn't see anyone else. However, she does spot some green vines along the house beside her. "These… These weren't here before, were they?"

"Ha!" Her attention snaps back to the battle. Undyne has gotten past the wall of bones, and spears are appearing around Papyrus, shooting randomly and rapidly at him.

"THIS IS QUITE THE TURN AROUND! BUT I SHALL NOT FALTER!" Papyrus dodges spears, almost dancing as he does. Nyssa smiles, but her teeth are clenched as each spear flies past her friend.

"Will you stop dodging and fight back?" Undyne shouts. Nyssa laughs lightly.

"IF YOU INSIST!" Tall bones shoot up from the ground and surround Papyrus, blocking the flying spears. The bones then shoot out from him, and at Undyne. He throws his hand forward, and more bones appear and shoot at Undyne, leaving only the tiniest space for her to avoid the attack. She managers to find the small spaces though, and as she's overwhelmed by bones, she remains strong and smiling.

"You've hit me like once! You can do better than that! Give it your all! If we're gonna fight, you better not hold back!" Nyssa's phone rings. She quickly pulls it out of her pocket and answers.

"Hello?"

"hey, what's up? i thought you'd be home about now."

"Oh, hey Sans." Nyssa continues to watch the fighting. "Papyrus decided I needed to join him and Undyne for training. I gotta say, I don't think I'll be walking for a few days now." She hears laughing, and it makes her laugh as well. "He and Undyne are having a match right now. It's really… Scary. But it's cool too."

"yeah. my bro has too much fun when he trains. it's pretty cool. if you pay attention, sometimes he puts designs into his attacks. sometimes he'll even write out sentences."

"That sounds ridiculous, and just like him." Nyssa shakes her head. "This is the first time I've really gotten to see him fight… I really don't think of him as a fighter, but he's great."

"he's pretty tough. undyne won't let him in the royal guard though. i've asked her about it, and… i almost agree with her logic. anyways, if you're gonna be gone, i'm gonna go to grilby's. i'll see you two later."

"Okay. Also… Sans, maybe we can talk later. Papyrus… He really wants his big family." Nyssa waits for a response, but after several seconds of silence, she looks at her phone. The call ended. She sighs and returns to watching the fight, which is slowly turning in Undyne's favor.


	16. Chapter 16

Nyssa runs her fingers over the walls of the cave she had first landed in as she looks up at the hole in the roof. All she sees is white beyond the dirt. She then looks to the exit of the little cavern, where Sans and Papyrus are setting up her easel for her.

"Thanks for helping me." She says with a smile.

"OF COURSE! WE'RE ALWAYS HAPPY TO HELP! BESIDES, NOW WE CAN WATCH YOU PAINT!" Papyrus says with a smile. Sans shakes his head.

"pap, i don't think watching her will be all that interesting. painting can take a while, you know."

"I KNOW! BUT IF I'M TO LEARN HOW TO PAINT LIKE A MASTER THEN I MUST LEARN FROM ONE! THAT MEANS I HAVE TO WATCH HER WORK!" Nyssa blushes as she looks at the two skeletons.

"I-I'm r-really not that good." She says with a shy smile. "Y-you give me way too much credit."

"NONSENSE! YOUR WORK IS AMAZING!" Nyssa blushes more and quickly turns her attention back to the walls of the room. She sees vines running up and down it, but it's dark, and hard to make out much detail. The walls look like darkness, with green veins running through it, breaking up the shadows ever so slightly.

"Well… It's fine if you stay. I don't mind, I guess." She walks to her over and sits against the wall next to the canvas. At her side is a bag. She pulls it onto her lap and begins pulling out paints and brushes, as well as a paint palette. As she starts transferring paint onto the palette, Sans turns and begins walking away.

"well, i think i'm gonna take off then. give me a call if you need some help."

"I'LL WALK YOU BACK TO THE ENTRANCE, BROTHER! NYSSA, DON'T START PAINTING WITHOUT ME!" Papyrus starts following after Sans, making him look up at his brother.

"bro, i'll be fine. don't worry."

"I SIMPLY WANT TO ENSURE YOU GET BACK SAFELY! IT ISN'T A LONG WALK, SO I WON'T BE GONE LONG."

"alright, alright. heh, thanks bro." Nyssa giggles as she watches them leave.

"Don't take too long Papyrus."

"I WON'T!" They disappear from her sight, and Nyssa lets out a long sigh.

"Those two are such a handful." She looks at the paint she's already brought out. It glistens gently, reflecting the light from the barrier. "I wonder if Papyrus'll do well with painting. I mean, as long as he enjoys it, I suppose it doesn't matter." She giggles.

"Yeah, mediocracy is great, isn't it?" She looks up, and across the room from her is Flowey. His smug smile makes her grit her teeth.

"What do you want?" Nyssa snaps.

"Me? Oh, I've just been observing. You know, I'm just a little flower. What can I do against you? Or those skeletons?" His face becomes twisted, demonic. "Well, I guess I could kill them. I've done it before, more times than I can count!" Nyssa's heart stops a moment.

"Wh-what? I-I don't believe that, not for a second." She glares at Flowey. "Get lost!"

"Oh, why should I go? I'm not the one who doesn't belong in the Underground, now am I?" Nyssa throws a paintbrush, but it misses. "How pathetic. This world isn't some happy little dream. Everyone will turn on you eventually." Suddenly, white pellets appear around Flowey. "Everyone will abandon you. Sure, you can't die, but that doesn't mean it hurts any less." The pellets shoot at Nyssa. She dives to her right, dodging the attack, but spilling her paint, and dropping her palette, though it lands paint-side up.

"What is wrong with you? You and that kid are both screwed up!"

"That kid didn't matter. It was the one possessing them, Chara. She was the only one who got me. The only one who understood what it feels like!" More pellets appear, and more, and more, and more. Nyssa scrambles to her feet. "And. They're. Dead." The pellets shoot at Nyssa in rapid succession. Nyssa runs, barely avoiding being hit by each wave of the attack. Suddenly, her foot catches on a vine, and she trips. She feels as the pellets bury themselves into her side and back, and she cries out in pain. "Ha! Ha ha ha! You think it'll end here too, don't you? You don't even understand how wrong you are! I may not be at my best right now, but when I am, I'll make you regret taking them away from me. I'll make you pay for everything! And after you've hurt enough, I'll make sure to really ramp things up!"

"D-demented weed!" Nyssa shouts. The pellets keep coming, but her wrists, ankles, and neck are all tied down by vines. "I didn't do anything! I didn't ask for this! So leave me alone!" All she hears in response is a sickening laugh.

"nyssa!" Suddenly the attacks and the laughing stop. The vines retreat, and Nyssa is simply left lying on the ground, her clothes riddled with holes, and stained with blood. Slowly, she lifts herself up with her arms and turns her head to see Sans and Papyrus running towards her.

"NYSSA, WHAT HAPPENED? ARE YOU GOING TO BE OKAY? NYSSA?" Papyrus kneels next to her and she smiles up at him.

"Y-yeah, j-just, give me a, a sec." She holds her hand out, and her green light reaches back towards her, covering her body. When it disappears, she sits up and leans back against the wall.

"what happened? we heard a scream and ran back."

"That… That stupid flower attacked me." Nyssa sighs and shuts her eyes as she leans her head against the wall as well. "He… He was really angry, and he was talking like he's got something really big planned."

"flower…" For a moment, Sans' eyes go blank.

"WELL, YOU ARE IN NO CONDITION TO PAINT NOW. COME ON, LET'S GO HOME. NEXT TIME I WON'T LEAVE YOUR SIDE, I PROMISE! THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL PROTECT YOU!" Nyssa smiles.

"Thanks Papyrus…"

* * *

As Nyssa stands at the beginning of the Judgement Hall, paintbrush in hand, her eyes wander towards the white and blue lump sitting off to the side, leaning against a pillar.

"Sans, you don't have to stay with me." She says.

"if i left you alone, pap would never forgive me. besides, this is a great chance for me to catch up on some sleep." Nyssa rolls her eyes.

"Catch up implies you've been missing some." She smirks, and he simply smiles, his eyes shut, hood pulled over his head. Nyssa dips one of her brushes in paint, and begins her work. "Well, whatever. You're less trouble when you're asleep." Sans opens one eye.

"what's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing." She continues painting, and Sans opens both his eyes now.

"you can't just leave me hanging like that. come on."

"Go back to sleep Sans. I have painting to do." Sans shuts his eyes.

"fine. just don't get into any trouble while i'm sleeping."

"No promises." Sans chuckles, and Nyssa giggles. Her brushes runs back and forth along the canvas as she quickly lays down a layer of gold, leaving only a single strip of white, reaching across the canvas at a downward angle. "This place is really beautiful." She quietly says.

"it is… you can hear birds singing outside, and there are flowers blooming just past the windows. i don't really get to enjoy this place all that often. the only time i come here is when i'm expecting to have a bad time."

"Well, not you can enjoy it. Of course, you're wasting time sleeping, but that's a different story for a different time." Sans opens his eyes and glares at Nyssa, though he's still smiling.

"i'm starting to think you wanna have a bad time."

"Maybe another day. I don't need more of my paint spilled. That freaky flower already wasted some." She dips her brush in some orange paint and continues to work. "Say, have you spoken with your father lately?"

"before it was fun, but now i'm really starting to think you want trouble."

"Look, you can't avoid this forever. He really wants to talk with you." She looks at Sans, but he pulls his hood down further.

"just finish your painting…" Nyssa continues to watch Sans for a minute, then she sighs and continues her work, her hands moving more sluggishly than before.


	17. Chapter 17

Nyssa sits beneath the balcony, behind the house. She leans against the back door, and looks out at the trees, while pulls Sans coat tightly over herself. She can hear shouting from inside the house, and she smiles.

"papyrus! where is she? i'm gonna kill her!"

"SANS, CALM DOWN. IT'S JUST YOUR JACKET. SHE ISN'T GOING TO HURT IT."

"oh no, this is more than that. she stole it just to annoy me!" Nyssa laughs as she listens to the two argue.

"You're so easy, Sans." She shakes her head and looks up and behind herself, at the door. She then looks back at the trees, happily curled up with the jacket. She puts her arms through the sleeves, wearing it backwards. She then sticks her hands in the pockets, and she feels a key. Nyssa pulls it out and looks at it, then at the door. Slowly she gets to her feet. "I've… Never been in here before. I wonder…" She sticks the key in. "Oh my god, it actually fits. He's had the key on him the whole time." She turns the key, and then opens the door. "Little liar… Oh, we can't get in anymore. I'm too lazy to get a new key. It's empty anyways." She shakes her head as she walks inside and shuts the door behind herself. The room reminds her of an abandoned lab. There's a large machine off to the side with a cover over it, and a wall with blueprints and drawers.

"i swear, she just loves to upset me." Nyssa jumps and looks around.

"O-oh, right. Th-they're inside." She looks to her right, at the wall connected to the house. "This must be that space under the stairs." She walks to the wall and looks at the blueprints. She can't read the writing. "It's really… Familiar." She runs her fingers over it, then looks at the machine. "This… I…" She looks at the writing, then at the machine. A chill runs down her spine. Quickly, she turns her attention to the drawers. She opens them, but what she finds is notes and pictures. She pulls out one of the pictures. It's of Sans, Papyrus, Alphys, Undyne, Toriel, Asgore, and a few others, as well as Frisk. "Hey… This… Where did this even come from?" She looks at it for a few moments, then sighs and puts it back. Instead, she pulls out another picture. It's of a younger Sans, Gaster, and a few others that she doesn't recognize. "I wonder who these monsters are… Maybe Gaster'll tell me. I could ask Sans, but I like living." She puts it back, then closes the drawer.

"what are you doing?" Nyssa freezes. She can feel the cold gaze on her back.

"Uh…" Slowly she turns around. Sans is standing there, glaring at her. Nyssa fakes a smile, then quickly pulls the hood over her face. "N-Nyssa isn't here right now. Please leave a message afte…" She's cut off as Sans yanks the hood down.

"i can deal with you stealing my hoodie, but you came in here without permission. you know, that's really not cool. in fact, i'm kinda pissed." Nyssa tries to step back, but she instantly hits the wall.

"Uh… W-well… W-well I-I'm not some random guest anymore!" She stutters with a stern look. "I-if I'm really p-part of the family, th-there shouldn't be big secrets anymore!" Sans looks surprised. "Th-this place, that…" She glances at the machine. "Wh-why are you hiding it? D-does Papyrus know about it?" Sans hesitates, then he sighs.

"you're a real pain, you know that?" He says with a half-hearted smile. "no, he doesn't, not completely anyways. he just calls this place my lab, and he doesn't bother with it. and you're right, you're part of the family now. that also means you should show respect for papyrus and i. if we have something we don't want you to see, then don't go snooping." He starts walking towards the door. "come on, lets get out of here."

"But… What is that thing?" Sans stops and looks at Nyssa, then at the machine. "Come on. Sorry I sort of broke in, but I'm here now, so can't you tell me?" She gives Sans a big, cheesy smile. He groans.

"yeah, whatever. you're not gonna let it go if i don't. that machine is what my dad fell into." Nyssa looks surprised. She turns to the machine. "i... was very involved with that project. i even got a labcoat and badge from my dad so i could go into the lab whenever i wanted and work on it. it's broken now. i've tried to fix it too, but…" Nyssa looks at Sans again. He's looking at the machine. "now that i know what happened, it makes some sense. when my dad fell in, the incomplete machine was overloaded. it wasn't prepared to handle matter transport yet. we'd only run tests with light and energy before then. it fried and destroyed itself until it finally shut down completely. i thought i could fix it, but nothing works."

"I see…" Nyssa sighs. "Sans… Sorry. Just, I was curious. Forgive me, please?" Sans looks at Nyssa, and she smiles at him. He shakes his head, but smiles as well.

"well, you were gonna find out about it sooner or later. i guess i'll forgive you. now, come on." He walks out the door, and Nyssa follows. She looks at the jacket still on her and giggles. "i want my jacket back. you don't get to keep it." He looks at Nyssa, and she pouts at him.

"No! It's mine now! You just threw it on the couch!"

"nyssa, give me my jacket." He stops walking, and so does Nyssa. She crosses her arms.

"No."

"come on. besides, you look ridiculous right now. you've got your sweater, but you've got my jacket on backwards too. just give it here."

"Nope." Nyssa shakes her head. "It's mine now." She smirks. Sans' eye glows, and with a quick motion with his hand, the hood flips up and smacks Nyssa in the face. He smirks at her.

"you should pick your battles better. i was really nice about you going into that room, so just give me the jacket." Nyssa grabs the hood and holds it down.

"How about… No!" She starts running.

"hey!" Sans runs after her. "jacket thief! get back here! is this what sisters are like? i don't need sisters if my stuff is gonna go missing!"

"What are you talking about?" Nyssa shouts back. "I'm a sansational sister!" She laughs, and she can hear Sans laughing behind her, though his voice is becoming quieter as the distance between them grows. She slows down a bit, allowing Sans to keep pace with her. "Come on, Sans! If you catch me you'll get your jacket back!"

"easy…" Suddenly Sans appears in front of Nyssa. She tries to stop, but ends up tripping over her feet and falls into Sans. He braces for the impact, and manages to catch her. "told ya, easy." He says with a wink. Nyssa blushes as she stands upright and crosses her arms.

"You cheated!"

"nah. you never said you i couldn't use a shortcut." He holds his hand out, and Nyssa sighs angrily as she takes the jacket off and hands it to Sans. "thank you." He puts it on. "now, we should go get pap and head to the castle." Nyssa looks surprised.

"Castle?"

"yeah." Sans starts walking back towards home, and Nyssa follows. "asgore has been trying to get tori to talk with him for a while, and this time she finally agreed, but she asked that it be a group thing, not just one on one. asgore told her to invite some friends and he'll do the same. she invited me and told me to bring my brother and you along if you two were available." Nyssa smiles.

"I… Haven't actually gone to the castle before. I never even met Asgore."

"well, he came by before, but you were passed out." Sans says. "anyways, i'm not sure what's gonna happen, but hey, who doesn't like parties?" Nyssa giggles. She opens her mouth to say something, but some yellow coloring in the tree line catches her attention. She looks at where it was, but suddenly there's nothing, except a thin green vine clinging to one of the trees, with some leaves sprouting off of it. "something wrong?" Sans asks. Nyssa looks at him, then smiles.

"No. Just seeing things. Anyways, we better hurry. If we're late, Papyrus'll get really upset."

"heh, yeah."


	18. Chapter 18

Nyssa shifts from foot to foot as she stands between Sans and Papyrus, outside of a grey house. Undyne and Alphys are there as well, along with a robot that Nyssa doesn't recognize.

"so, looks like you've recovered pretty well." Sans says as he looks at the robot.

"Darling, something as simple as death can't keep me down. No, Alphys got my body up and running again. In fact, it's even better now. I'll be making my premiere show tomorrow. But it didn't seem like a problem if I came to see the King."

"WELL, I'M CERTAINLY EXCITED! I'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO MEET YOU! YOU'RE AN AMAZING SUPERSTAR! AND THIS NEW BODY IS QUITE STUNNING!" Nyssa looks between the skeletons, then back at the robot.

"Well, I do believe in all the excitement, I haven't introduced myself to this lovely little beauty." He smiles at Nyssa, and she smiles nervously back at him. "You're the human that saved everyone, Nyssa, right?" She nods.

"Y-yeah."

"Well, Nyssa, darling, my name is Mettaton. I'm a superstar here in the underground. When that… other human was here, I tried to stop them, but… Well, that's in the past now. My body is rebuilt, and I'm ready to get back to work!"

"It's nice to meet you, Mettaton."

"Darling, I…" Mettaton starts to speak, but he's cut off.

"Oh my…" The group looks to see Toriel walk up, out of the hallway. "There really are quite a few of you here." She smiles at them. "I don't believe I've met you three before. Asgore must have invited you."

"Uh, y-yes m-m-ma'am." Alphys squeaks out.

"Yep. I'm Undyne, the head of the royal guard. This is Alphys, she's the royal scientist. And this is Mettaton. He's, well… He's Mettaton."

"And what's _that_ supposed to mean?" Mettaton questions as he crosses his arms. Nyssa giggles, as does Toriel.

"It's nice to meet all three of you. And it's good to see you three once again." She looks at Nyssa and the brothers. "I'm glad you all came."

"OF COURSE, TORIEL. WHEN MY BROTHER BROUGHT UP THE INVITATION I COULDN'T HELP BUT ACCEPT! IT ISN'T OFTEN I'M INVITED TO THE CASTLE, LET ALONE BY THE QUEEN."

"Well, at this point I'm not really the Queen anymore." Toriel replies. Nyssa looks at Sans, but he just shrugs.

"say, tori, how you liking that painting nyssa gave you?" Toriel looks at Sans.

"Oh, it's beautiful!" Nyssa blushes.

"I-I'm glad you like it."

"Of course! It's just so well done! I have it hanging up so I can see it while I'm reading."

"Darling, you paint?" Mettaton asks.

"Uh, y-yeah." Nyssa quietly replies as she looks at him. "I… Uh, I paint."

"Darling! You must come and do some painting for me!" Mettaton excitedly shouts. "Oh, this is wonderful! If we go straight after this party then I can use it during my big debut! I need a good setting though. What about outfits?" He continues on, making Nyssa laugh lightly. Her arms uncross and drop to her sides.

"My, you're all here." The group looks to see Asgore walk out of the house. "What a wonderful turn out." He smiles. "Please, follow me. I have tea ready inside." The group follows him in, and to a living area where a tea set is awaiting, as well as several chairs and pillows on the floor. "Please, take a cup. I heard talking outside, so I poured the tea just moments ago." Everyone takes a cup, and while most take chairs, Nyssa and Sans sit on some pillows and lean back against a wall.

"This is… interesting." Nyssa quietly says. "Before the resets the most people I had together at once was four. You, Pap, Undyne, and Alphys." Sans watches Papyrus as he talks with Mettaton.

"well, to be honest, i don't really hang out or anything with most of these guys. i kinda avoid the lab, and last time i tried to hang with undyne i wound up almost blacked out from exhaustion. she can be a bit intense, you know?"

"Oh? How many tents?" Nyssa smirks as Sans laughs.

"Are you two having fun?" They look up to see Toriel standing above them.

"Yeah. Just chatting. Care to join us?" Toriel pulls a chair closer and sits down.

"Well, I haven't gotten to speak with either of you two lately. I've certainly been missing the jokes at the door." Sans chuckles.

"sorry. it's a handful taking care of this one." Sans ruffles Nyssa's hair, and she swats his hand away.

"What are you talking about? I have to take care of you anymore! You're too much work for Papyrus alone!"

"what are you talking about? you're the one who picks fights with flowers."

"You're the bone head who falls asleep one the job every single time." Nyssa glares at Sans, but he smiles at her. Toriel giggles.

"You two are quite the pair. Together, you're quite humerus." Nyssa groans while Sans laughs.

"yeah, sometimes nyssa really tickles my funny bone. de-spine my best efforts, i can't help but have pun with her." Nyssa's blush worsens as she and Toriel laugh.

"Okay, stop. Seriously! Your puns are getting worse every day!" Nyssa playfully shoves Sans.

"nah. you're just jealous of my sansational sense of humor."

"Oh my, you're really quite something." Toriel says. They hear tapping, and everyone quiets down. Asgore coughs, then looks at the group.

"I must thank all of you for coming. I… have made mistakes in the past. These mistakes cost me dearly, including my beautiful wife." He looks at Toriel. "Still, Toriel, you have finally agreed to speak with me again. And each of you agreed to come to make this easier. I… am grateful." He smiles. "As well, Nyssa…" He looks at Nyssa, and she shrinks down slightly. "You deserve my thanks as well. Without you, the whole of monster kind, perhaps even all of humanity as well, would be destroyed. You could have simply saved yourself, kept out of this, but you've cared for us monsters, and aided in ending the threat to my precious people. I cannot thank you enough."

"N-no, I-I…" Nyssa's face is completely red. She looks down at her tea. "I… I had to help. A-and… E-everyone here has been s-so kind, it's… it's really the o-only thing for me to have done." Her voice is quiet, but in the small room, everyone hears her.

"nyssa, i don't think you understand how big this is to us." Nyssa looks up at Sans.

"Humans and monsters have been enemies for as long back as we can remember." Undyne adds.

"T-to have a h-human s-save us, a-and r-risk their life, t-to get h-hurt for us…" Alphys stutters.

"Nyssa…" She looks up at Toriel, who is smiling sweetly down at her. "We don't mean to embarrass you. Simply put, we are all grateful to you. You are the sole reason most of us are here today. Without you, we'd all be dust." She looks at Asgore. "Humans should never have been made a target of hatred, and especially not children." Asgore's smile disappears.

"Yes, I… realize this. I've made so many mistakes in the past, and perhaps its time I remedy them." He looks at Nyssa. "Which is why I'm glad extra glad you came today Nyssa. You see… We have six human souls right now. These humans fell down before. All of them were young, some younger than others. They were killed, so that we could be freed. However… If your powers can revive monsters, then if you're willing, I would like to see if you can revive these children, and allow me to apologize to them for the fear and pain my rash decision caused them." Everyone looks at Asgore in shock.

"A-Asgore, you…" Toriel quietly starts.

"I know that everyone wants to get to the surface, but…" Asgore looks at those in the room. "I can't let this stay on my mind any longer. It is my weakness that caused these humans, humans who could have become as beloved as Nyssa, to lose their lives before their time. To steal souls like that… I regret what I've done. I don't expect them to forgive me, but they deserve another chance at life." He looks at Nyssa again. "And I think, given how Nyssa has blessed us monsters, that my people will understand my decision. I think we've all had a painful reminder of how precious life is, and I don't wish to waste any other ones."

"w-wow…" Sans quietly says. He looks at Nyssa. "hey, you know, you should probably say something."

"O-oh, u-um…" Nyssa looks down at her tea again, then back up at everyone. Most of them look confused, or stunned, except Toriel and Asgore. They're smiling at her.

"I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, THINK THIS IS AN EXCELLENT PLAN!" Nyssa looks at Papyrus, and he smiles at her. "TRUTH BE TOLD, I… NEVER LIKED THE IDEA OF KILLING A HUMAN. AND I STILL DON'T. IF WE CAN REVIVE THE HUMANS WE KILLED IN THE PAST, WELL, I THINK ONLY GOOD THINGS CAN COME OF SAVING A LIFE!" Nyssa smiles.

"heh, i guess he's right." Sans says with one eye shut. "these humans probably didn't get to experience anything good about us monsters, and now that i think about it, it'd leave a sour taste in my mouth if we let their last moments be filled with fear and suffering because of us. not that i met any of them or anything."

"Yeah! It's totally uncool to leave things like this." Undyne adds. "Now that I know humans can be pretty fun, I think we should give those other humans a chance! Screw the surface if it means we have to be cold-hearted killers to get there!"

"I certainly would love to meet them." Mettaton says. "I do love humans. I mean, I plan on becoming an even more beautiful star, so more fans is always good."

"I-it sounds l-like everyone i-is in agreement." Nyssa looks at each face, and they all smile at her. She stands.

"Well, if that's how it is, then how could I even think of saying no?" She smirks. "If there is a life to save, then I'm happy to oblige. After all, what good is a gift like mine if I never use it?"

"Yeah! Let's go right now! Come on! I'll race you punks there!" Undyne jumps to her feet.

"NYEH HEH HEH. YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO BEAT ME IN A RACE, UNDYNE!" Papyrus jumps up as well.

"Oh yeah? You're on!" The two take off, leaving the group behind. Asgore laughs.

"How energetic. These youth…" His smile is warm.

"welp, i guess we're taking a field trip." Sans chugs his tea and stands up. Nyssa chugs hers, and they put their cups on the table, as do the others. The remaining group then follows Asgore. As they walk, Nyssa and Sans are at the back of the group. Nyssa watches as Asgore slowly inches closer to Toriel. At first she moves away, but then she stops, and allows him to stand near here.

"This took an… unexpected turn." Nyssa quietly says.

"you're telling me." Sans sighs. "still, it isn't a bad thing. i think, if the king is making that big of a decision, that you've made a real impact on us, even outside of the whole saving our lives thing." Nyssa watches Sans as he speaks.

"Hey, Sans, I've been wondering something."

"yeah? what is it?" He looks at her.

"Why is it when you drank that tea you opened your mouth, or when you eat or anything you open it, but when you talk you don't? I mean, Papyrus does, and so does your dad, though not quite as much as your brother I guess." Sans looks surprised. Then he shrugs and smiles.

"well, i gotta open my mouth to eat, but i guess i'm just too lazy to do it when i talk. us skeletons don't have to open it in order to speak. i mean, we don't have all the squishy, fleshy bits that the rest of you do, so our voices are more of a projection through magic. that's why we sound so different too." He says as he looks forward. He then opens his mouth and continues. "see, i can talk like this, but i don't really see the point in it." He looks at Nyssa again, but she's looking away, a slight blush in her cheeks. "something wrong?"

"N-no, just… Y-you certainly look different when you talk like that, th-that's all." Sans looks at her in confusion for a moment, but then he shrugs and returns to looking forward. They continue walking, no one looking back to see the little yellow flower, following not far behind them.


	19. Chapter 19

Nyssa looks at the set of souls in front of her, all in glass cases. Each soul resonates with a different color, all set out nicely in front of a throne, on a bed of golden flowers.

"The souls are kept locked away usually, but the bodies are kept in a room down the hall." Asgore says. "I'm not sure what you need to do your work."

"Well, I'm guessing I need the bodies, but maybe the souls'll be enough." Nyssa holds her hand out, but no button appears anymore. The power simply flows from her, and envelops the souls. The green light shimmers, but quickly fades, leaving the souls unchanged.

"Nothing happened!" Undyne shouts.

"The souls aren't injured." Nyssa says. "I can't heal what's not broken. What I probably need to do is heal the bodies, and when I do that the souls should try and return, kinda like the monsters."

"well, guess we should take the souls down to the bodies."

"BUT, IF THE SOULS ARE TRAPPED IN THESE CASES, WILL THEY BE ABLE TO REUNITE WITH THEIR BODIES?" Papyrus asks.

"We'll simply open the cases before Nyssa heals the humans." Asgore responds. Nyssa looks at each of the monsters, then back at the souls. She puts her hand over her chest as she thinks back to the red soul she saw destroyed almost two months ago.

"Let's go then. I think these guys have been waiting long enough." Nyssa says. Asgore nods to Alphys, and she takes a remote in her hand and presses a couple of buttons. The souls move to either side of the room, then sink into holes that open up in the ground.

"They'll be waiting for us." Asgore says as he begins walking. "Come no, it's just this way." He walks out of the throne room, then down another hallway. The group is silent as they go. Nyssa looks at Sans, but he seems distracted.

"Sans? You okay?"

"hmm?" He looks at Nyssa. "yeah. just, seeing those souls is a bit different for us than for you. i'm sure everyone felt a pull to them. not anything to make us go crazy, but enough to sort of distract us."

"Is that why everyone's so quiet?" Sans shrugs, and Nyssa rolls her eyes. "So helpful." They reach the end of the hallway, and Asgore opens the door to another room. The group walks in, and they see a set of coffins, with the souls in front of their respective coffin. The only one without a soul is the red one.

"This is it. We've kept the bodies here, preserved and safe with magic." Nyssa's stomach turns as she looks at the coffins.

"O-oh… W-well, that spares us the smell at least." She starts to raise her hand, but suddenly something grabs her wrist, and she's yanked back against a wall.

"You fools…" Nyssa groans as she looks at the little yellow flower before her.

"Flowey…" She grits her teeth. Everyone is looking at them, but Nyssa can see past her friends, to the souls, and the vines breaking through the glass cases. "No! The souls!" Nyssa tries to move, but vines wrap around her, and squeeze her tightly.

"Not happening!" Flowey throws Nyssa into Sans and Papyrus, knocking them over.

"Unhand the souls!" Asgore shouts as flames appear around him.

"Those belong to the children!" Toriel shouts as well.

"Those children were weak! They don't deserve another chance." Flowey laughs. Flames shoot at him from both Asgore and Toriel, but he quickly sinks into the ground. Undyne creates spears and aims for the vines, but they too disappear, taking the souls with them.

"W-we need to get those back!" Alphys shouts. "W-we can't revive th-the children w-without souls!" Laughter echoes from the hallway as Asgore and Toriel help pull Nyssa and the brothers back up onto their feet.

"We must hurry. If he absorbs the souls, who knows what sort of creature may be created." Toriel says as she turns and runs into the hallway.

"this is bad…" Sans mumbles as the group follows after Toriel. They chase the laughter, back into the throne room, then the room behind it, and finally, to the barrier. There they see Flowey, surrounded by the souls.

"Oh, you all are really just as dumb as I thought." Vines whip out from behind the group, grabbing Asgore, Toriel, Undyne, Mettaton, and Alphys and raising them high into the air. The vines also grab at Papyrus, Sans, and Nyssa, but a single blaster appears and completely obliterates the vines.

"S-SANS! YOUR BLASTER!" Papyrus shouts.

"hey, weed! what's the goal here? take the souls? break free? if so, why are you hurting my friends?" Nyssa looks from the skelebros, to her friends up above, to Flowey. His smile disappears for a moment, but only a moment.

"Why? Well, isn't it obvious? I'm not just here for power. I've had power before. I'm here to have some fun, to destroy everything!" He laughs, and Nyssa grits her teeth.

"You think this is fun? You're just a twisted little weed!" She shouts. "Give them back! And give back the souls!"

"Oh, you want these?" The souls begin to spin rapidly, then they all fly into Flowey, creating a rainbow of light. "Well you aren't getting them back! Just like I'm not getting Chara back, am I?" Shouts of pain make the four on the ground look up. The vines are squeezing tighter and tighter.

"Let them go!" Nyssa shouts.

"YES! PUT THEM DOWN THIS INSTANT! OR ELSE WE'LL FORCE YOU TO BRING THEM DOWN!" Nyssa looks from Sans to Papyrus. Sans' eye is glowing blue, and Papyrus' eyes are glowing orange, surprising her.

"Go ahead, make me." Flowey replies. Suddenly, blasters surround him. They fire off all at once, but he sinks into the ground, avoiding the hit. When he resurfaces, bones suddenly starts flying at him from all direction. Flowey laughs as pellets appear, and fly at the bones, blocking each one. "You idiots don't get it! I'm a god now! Perhaps it's because I'm still in this form though." He laughs harder. "Let's change things up then!" A light flashes, making Nyssa, cover her eyes. When she opens them, she's greeted by a terrifying sight. There's no longer a simple yellow flower before her. The giant creature has thick arms made of thorn covered vines, and an ugly, sideways jaw. It snaps at them as the face above it, on what looks like a screen, opens its eyes.

"Wh-what…?" Nyssa glances at Sans and Papyrus, but both look as horrified and confused as her. She then looks up, but her friends are no longer there. "Wh-where did they go?" Nyssa glares at Flowey. "What have you done? Give them back!" She shouts.

"Don't worry, they aren't dead. No, even better! I've absorbed them!" Flowey laughs, and it's louder, more distorted. Nyssa cringes at the sound. "I can feel their power, but I need more. Just a little more, and I can become a true god!" Hundreds of vines shoot out at the group of three, but Papyrus grabs Nyssa and pulls her with him as he dives to the right, while Sans dives to the left, dodging the attack. More vines shoot out though, following them as the three run. Papyrus throws bones back at the vines, making them shrink back, but only temporarily. Nyssa glances at Sans, and she sees him teleporting backwards, over and over, as he attacks the vines with a mix of bones and blasters.

"We can't just run! Papyrus!" Nyssa looks up at Papyrus.

"I KNOW! BUT I HAVE TO PROTECT YOU! IF I START ATTACKING, I WON'T BE ABLE TO DEFEND YOU!" Nyssa's heart drops as she listens to Papyrus speak. She suddenly stops running, and Papyrus slides to a stop as well. "NYSSA!"

"I can't die! Don't worry about me!" Nyssa shouts. "Attack him!" She spins to face the vines, but just before they reach her, they're blasted away. She looks to Sans, who is glaring at her.

"we can't just forget about you! don't go trying to play victim just so we can fight! one way or another we'll protect you and get them back, so keep moving!" His voice is shaky. Nyssa can hear the suppressed anger. A vine suddenly shoots ahead of the others that are chasing Sans, and he teleports to dodge it.

"I'm useless in a fight! Just concentrate on him! I'll be okay!"

"WE'LL NEVER LEAVE YOU BEHIND!" Papyrus tries to take Nyssa's hand again. "COME ON, SISTER! WE CAN'T STOP MOVING!" Nyssa hesitates as she looks up at Papyrus, then she reaches out to grab his hand as well. Vines reach up and grab Papyrus' wrist, and suddenly he's yanked up into the sky.

"Papyrus!" Nyssa screams as she reaches up towards him. "Papyrus! No!" Her screams become louder, more panicked. "Give him back!" Tears fill her eyes. Suddenly, Nyssa feels vines wrap around her ankles, and she's flung into the air. As she flies up she sees the full room from above. Flowey's huge form, Sans still running, though now looking up at his brother in horror, and Papyrus, being hung up from his wrists, struggling to break free. A vine shoots up, even above Nyssa, and then slams down on her back. She hears cracking as she flies down and slams into the ground.

"NYSSA! SANS, HELP HER!" Papyrus shouts.

"shit, shit!" Sans teleports next to Nyssa and grabs her. The two disappear, barely avoiding a set of thorn covered vines that shoot up from the ground where she had been lying. They appear behind Flowey. "nyssa! are you okay?" Nyssa puts her hand on Sans' arm, which is supporting her head. Her green light covers both of them.

"I'll be fine." As the light disappears, Flowey turns and swipes at them with his arm.

"Hiding won't work!" He shouts as the two once again disappear. They reappear at the room entrance. Sans looks up at Papyrus. "Sans, we have to…" Nyssa's cut off as Papyrus suddenly cries out in pain. He then disappears, leaving no dust behind. "Papyrus!"

"pap!" Flowey laughs once again.

"I've always liked him. You know, he even started some Flowey Fan Clubs in other timelines." Flowey smirks down at them. "I've absorbed him too. But, you know, I really don't wanna absorb Smiley Trashbag there. Back when I had the power of reset, when I was the first god of this pitiful place, you caused me to reset more than anyone or anything else. It always pissed me off." Nyssa gets to her feet, and Sans stands upright. "And you, Nyssa. When you came here, you were interesting. So much so that Chara wanted your body for their own. But now…" He glares at Nyssa, and she returns the hateful gaze. "Now Chara is dead! The only one who got me. The only one who understood everything! But that was okay, because I thought, once they died, I could just reset. But no…" Nyssa glances at Sans. Tears are falling from his face as he glares at Flowey as well. "Even though you can't use reset, I didn't get it back. It just disappeared!"

"So what? You want to blame me for stopping that psychotic kid?"

"Chara was my only friend! I could reset now, I've finally got the power back. But first, you need to _suffer_." A wall of vines shoot up between Sans and Nyssa, forcing them to separate. "I'll make you watch as I destroy this trashbag! When I finish with him, there won't be enough dust left for you to revive him!" Flowey laughs. The vines all turn and chase after Sans. He starts running and teleporting. Nyssa tries to run to him, but vines wrap around her legs and hold her in place.

"Sans!" Nyssa shouts. Flowey's laughter echoes through the room, bouncing off the walls, off the barrier. Sans continues to dodge, but his movements quickly become sluggish. Nyssa starts to hold her hand up, but suddenly white throwing stars shoot out from Flowey and cut into her arms and legs. Nyssa drops to her knees, shouting in pain.

"nyssa! are y…" Sans looks at Nyssa, and misses the vines the pop up from the ground in front of him. He hits them and goes tumbling, while Nyssa's arms heal.

"Sans!" Nyssa screams. Sans starts to get to his hands and knees, but he doesn't see the host of pointed vines above him. "No…" The vines barrel down onto Sans.

"Die!" Flowey shouts.

"NO!" Nyssa screams as she throws his hands forward, aimed towards Sans. The vines don't stop. They continue to fall down upon Sans, until they suddenly hit a green barrier. Sans looks up at the shelter, then at Nyssa. She's breathing heavily, but she's smirking.

"n-nyssa?" He looks at the shield again. It suddenly grows and wraps all the way around Sans, encasing him in a bubble of green. Nyssa glowers up at Flowey, while he looks from her to the shield, then back again, in surprise.

"No more." Nyssa growls through gritted teeth. "I… I'm not fighter, but… But I won't let this continue. I won't let you take him away! I won't let you hurt him, or anyone else!" Nyssa leaves her left hand facing Sans, but with her right she points down at her legs. Her shield appears halfway down her body, then it swiftly moves further down, pushing the vines back. Cracking can be heard as the vines yank on her legs and feet before finally releasing, but almost instantly her healing light covers her, and she gets up to her feet once again.

"You can't do that! You can't simply become more powerful all of a sudden!" Flowey shouts.

"I haven't." Nyssa smirks. "I… I know I've always been able to do this, but like the healing, I needed a push to finally pull it out. You just pushed me over the edge." Sans stands, and the shield morphs to give him the space to do so. "I won't let you hurt him… I won't let you hurt anyone else, Flowey!"

"What can you do? Your shields will break, won't they? After all, you don't have the energy to keep them up for all of my attacks!" Nyssa grits her teeth. The shield around Sans disappears, and he teleports to her side. "You can't even attack me! Your only hope is to keep Sans alive!" He laughs. Suddenly, a blaster appears right in front of Flowey's face. Nyssa and Sans both look surprised. The mouth of the blaster opens, and a purple light shoots out at Flowey, cutting off his laugh.

" _THEY AREN'T ALONE._ " The two look back to see Gaster standing in the doorway, and behind him are a few other monsters, including members of the royal guard. Nyssa smiles, and when she looks at Sans, he's smiling as well. She then looks at Flowey, a smirk on her face.

"Looks like it's time for some weeding." Nyssa says.

"is now really the time for jokes?" Sans asks. Nyssa raises an eyebrow at him, and he chuckles. "heh, you're right. no better time than the present, right?" Flowey looks at the newcomers, and he smiles.

"You idiots… You don't understand what you've done…" He laughs. "You've delivered the last piece of it all to me! Ha! Ha ha ha hahahahaha!"


	20. Chapter 20

Vines whip at them, bullet bombs surround monsters, and projectiles shoot out from Flowey, aimed at the different monsters as the fight drags on. Nyssa uses her shield and her healing, supporting the group. However, she feels the exhaustion setting in.

" _I KNOW IT'S HARD, BUT KEEP GOING NYSSA. WE NEED YOU RIGHT NOW._ " Nyssa looks at Gaster.

"I'm not giving up yet." She looks at Flowey, and sees a host of blasters create a circle around him. Every other one is Sans', and the others are Gaster's. They fire off in unison, and overwhelm Flowey.

"you know, i thought a monster with six human souls would be a bit tougher. then again he is just a flower, so…"

"He's a very annoying flower." Nyssa says as the blasters disappear. Flowey shouts in rage and suddenly throws one of his arms out, swiping at the whole group. Nyssa puts up both of her hands and creates a shield, stopping it. However, she sees the other arm begin to move, and she quickly throws her right hand out, creating a second shield to stop its attack. Flowey squeezes the shields.

"You can't block forever! Your shields will break! You're already at your limit!"

"If you've been stopped in other timelines, then we can stop you now!" Nyssa shouts. However, her arms feel heavy, and her breathing is labored. Monsters with long ranged attacks continue to fight from in between the shields, with Gaster directing them. Sans stays at Nyssa's side though.

"hey, you're doing great. keep it up, and we'll get them back." He says while placing a hand on her shoulder.

"S-Sans, I don't know how long I can keep going. I'm already past my limit. I want to pass out." She continues to watch the fight against Flowey. A few attacks get past most of the monsters, but Gaster is at the back of the group, standing not far from Nyssa and Sans. He blocks the remaining attacks, protecting the two of them. "Flowey seems like he's tiring out too, but not as quick as us… Not as quick as me."

"guess that's what happens when you have the energy of a flower and six humans." Sans looks at Flowey, then at Nyssa. "look, i know this is hard on you, but keep going. if we fail here then who knows what'll happen next." Nyssa nods.

"I know… I-I know." Suddenly, a cracking sound makes Nyssa look at her shields, and Sans as well. "N-no…" Cracks quickly begin to spread along the shield. "Sans!"

"dad!" Gaster looks back. "the shields are breaking! nyssa can't keep them up! we need the monsters to move or they'll get crushed!" Gaster looks at the shields, then at the monsters in front of him.

" _EVERYONE, RUSH FORWARD OR RUN BACK! THE SHIELDS ARE GOING TO BREAK, AND YOU CAN'T STAY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROOM!_ " Gaster shouts. The monsters hear, and the couple of royal guards quickly leads the others forward, continuing the fight. " _YOU TWO NOW! LETS GO!_ " Gaster turns to Sans and Nyssa.

"i got nyssa! protect the others!" Sans holds on tightly to Nyssa's shoulder. Gaster nods and runs forward, joining the others. "nyssa, you trust me, right?"

"Y-yes."

"good. keep the shields going as long as you can. in fact, if you can mold those shields, try and angle the edges so those arms of his can't suddenly slip away, that'd be better." Nyssa shuts her eyes and concentrates on the shields. Sans watches as the ends of the shields curl in, if only slightly. "good. now, we aren't gonna move until you can't hold out any longer. For as long as you can stand it, we're gonna protect them."

"A-alright. Just, don't let me get squished, okay?" Nyssa smiles, and Sans chuckles.

"deal." Sans looks at the shields, and the cracks have almost reached the edges. He then looks at the group in front of him. Gaster and the guards have taken up the support role Nyssa was playing, protecting the others more so than fighting. Suddenly, Sans notices some green on the ground behind them. He frowns, then panics. "dad! behind you!" Nyssa looks as well, and the two are forced to simply watch in horror as vines spring up from behind and grab as the monsters. Gaster spins around and destroys some of the vines with a blaster, but others get past him.

"No!" Nyssa shouts. Suddenly, a sound, almost like glass shattering, rings out. The two disappear, and wind up in between Gaster and Flowey, though closer to the former. Behind them they hear the thunderous clap of Flowey's hands smacking together. Above them are shouts from some monsters who were captured. Though, the cries disappear suddenly, making Nyssa cringe.

" _SANS, I DON'T KNOW IF WE CAN FIGHT HIM LIKE THIS. HE'S GAINED TOO MUCH POWER, AND AS WE GET WEAKER, HE'LL GET STRONGER BY ABSORBING OUR SOULS._ " Sans looks at Gaster, then at Nyssa.

"i know, but… no, we should get these monsters out of here. if i've been enough to stop him before, then maybe it's time i step up…"

"Sans…" Nyssa looks into Sans' eyes as she leans into him. He wraps an arm around her waist, helping to keep her on her feet. Suddenly dozens of vines shoot up amidst the group of monsters, grabbing at everyone.

"You thought you were safe? Hahaha!" Flowey laughs. "Die, all of you! Or better yet! Become my power!" Most of the monsters are grabbed up this time. The vines also grab for Nyssa and Sans.

" _MOVE!_ " Both of them suddenly feel heavy, and then they're flung back about twenty feet. As they fly back, they see Gaster's hand facing them as the vines change direction and grab him from behind.

"Gaster!" Nyssa screams.

"dad!" Gaster tries to run, but he's too slow. The vines take him and lift him into the air with the others. Nyssa and Sans hit the ground hard, sliding back a few feet. Still, they look up at the capture monsters, at Gaster. He, like the others, struggles, but then disappears. Flowey laughs as, once again, Nyssa and Sans are left alone, tears streaming down both of their faces.

"All alone, all over again. This is starting to look pretty familiar." Flowey says with a smug smile. "You two really must enjoy watching your friend's get taken away."

"you dirty weed!"

"Weed… You think that this is what I really am? Oh no, now that I've gained enough soul energy from these monsters… Well…" He laughs. "It's time to finally reveal my true form!" Once again a flash of light forces the two of them to look away. When they look back they see a young boy standing there. He smiles at them. "Howdy. It's me, your pa, Asriel Dreemur."

"asriel dreemur? the prince? you… you were that flower?"

"I was stuck in that body, but now…" Once again his body changes, and this new form is far more intimidating. Asriel floats above Nyssa and Sans, smirking down at them.

"The prince… Wh-why are you doing this then? Why?" Nyssa shouts.

"Why? Because that's just how this world is. It's kill or be killed. You're all too weak to ever stand against me, and you're going to die. That's how it goes."

"Wh-what a bunch of nonsense." Nyssa laughs lightly, and Asriel frowns.

"What did you say?" Nyssa steps away from Sans, shakily standing on her own.

"You're way of doing things is just… Stupid." She looks at Sans, then at Asriel. "If it's kill or be killed, then what about me? I don't kill, and I can't be killed." She shuts her eyes. "So ridiculous." She opens one eye. "You know, I've heard the stories before, about you, about the history we humans have forgotten. I feel bad for you, I really do. That doesn't mean I'm going to let you have your way."

"What can you do?" Asriel shakes his head. "You're so weak. You're ready to collapse!"

"You got me there." Nyssa laughs lightly. "I'm about to pass out. I've pretty much spent all my energy. But…" She looks at Sans again. "I'm not alone." She looks at Asriel again. "Sans, you remember when we stopped Chara?"

"y-yeah…" Sans stutters.

"I… I'm gonna doing what I can, but…" She holds one hand out towards Asriel, then the other towards Sans. "You'll have to finish this." The green light shoots out at both of them. Sans feels light and warm as the light covers his body. His energy returns as he watches the light also enwrap Asriel. When the lights disappear, Nyssa collapses. Sans runs to her and picks her up. She's out.

"geeze nys, you've really put a lot of extra work onto me." He says with a smile. "i'll get them back though, so you just rest." He looks up at Asriel, who is laughing.

"What an idiot! Healing her enemy!" Sans glares at Asriel, then disappears. He and Nyssa reappear in the throne room, and he kneels down.

"don't move." He says as he lies her down on the flowers. "i'll be back for you, with everyone else." Sans then teleports back. He faces Asriel, his usual smile on his face. "you know, today i expected to just have a nice tea party with some friends. Maybe a bit awkward, but nice. it was a beautiful day for it too."

"Birds singing, flowers blooming, burning in hell, I've heard it all before!" Asriel shouts. "You don't understand, Sans. I've heard you bear your sad little soul to me more times than I can count. You've seen this world end time after time, and you never remember. It's the most twisted joke I've ever heard, and you're the punchline!"

"no, this is gonna be different from other times, because this is the last time."


	21. Chapter 21

Sans teleports several times, dodging a mixture of fire and stars as they fly at him. Asriel laughs as two swords appear in his hands, and he flies at Sans. Sans creates a couple bones, but when he tries to block a slash from the swords they're cut in half.

"you know, you're already annoying me." Sans says as a dozen blasters appear behind him.

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing." Asriel throws the swords as Sans, but Sans easily dodges, and the swords vanish. "I wanted Nyssa. After all, this whole show right now is for her." Sans hears thunder from above him and looks up. A few sparks shine in the air high above him. He teleports, just before lightning strikes where he was standing. Some of the blasters are hit, but they remain. The blasters fire at Asriel, but he swiftly dodges them all. "Well, I can always reset, and I know just when I'll I go back to."

"you know, i'm not a big fan of this whole reset thing. i'd really rather you just, you know, hand everyone back over to me." Sans holds out his hand and bones surround Asriel from every angle. When he closes his hand into a fist, the bones fly in at Asriel.

"And yet you're trying to kill me! You don't think, do you?" Asriel shoots stars out at the bones, hitting most. A few get past though, and manage to hit him.

"well, you are trying to kill me, so it's kind of a natural response. besides, if i don't stop you here, then you'll go hurt nyssa, and we can't have that." More bones surround Asriel, and then another layer past that does the same, and then another. "this'll be over real quick if you actually act like a reasonable monster and give my friends and family back." The first layer flies in and, like before, Asriel uses his stars to destroy most of them, though this time he manages to dodge the others, only getting hit once. Then the second layer goes, and only moments after, the third. The second layer gets a few more hits, but over half of the third layer makes it past the stars, and half of those hit Asriel. "unless, you know, you enjoy being a pin cushion for bones." Sans says with one of his eyes closed.

"Now, this is the Sans I remember." Asriel laughs as a blaster appears in his hands. He aims it at Sans. "I was worried you'd lost your touch. After all, my biggest pain was always you." Lights shine out of the blaster, one landing on Sans' chest. He looks down, then at Asriel. The blaster shoots, and bullets rush at Sans. He jumps to the side, managing to land himself in between two of the three lines of bullets. The round ends, but is swiftly followed by another round. He once again dodges. "You must have been distracted before. Now though, I'll have the pleasure of killing you in my true form, and I'll get to do it again! Though, next time I'll have to make sure Nyssa stays awake for the fun." He shoots a third round of bullets, almost immediately followed by a powerful beam of colorful energy. Sans teleports behind Asriel, and a few blasters join him.

"yeah, i'm not really planning on dying. sorry." The blasters fire at Asriel, and they manage to hit. He's pushed back, and some of his fur burns. "hey, papyrus, i know you can hear me!" Some more bones appear around Sans, and they shoot at Asriel.

"What are you doing? Calling out to your brother? No one will answer!" Asriel creates swords and blocks the bones with them. He then flies at Sans and slashes at him. Sans dodges a few of the strikes, then teleports back, out of Asriel's reach.

"well, let's agree to disagree. there are a lot of monsters in there, but if i pull out a few of them then i bet your power will crumble." Sans dodges some star bullets, and then teleports away from the explosions.

"They won't hear you."

"come on pap, if you don't wake up then i might just go be lazy and never do any work. who'll take care of nyssa, or protect everyone? papyrus, come on!" Sans shouts, and though he only hears Asriel's laughter in response, he feels a tug on his soul, and he smiles. "you can get out pap! and hey, maybe bring dad with you while you're at it. the old man has had a long enough break from everything, he doesn't get another one." Four blasters surround Asriel and fire instantly. He drops to the ground and avoids the attack.

"Cry and cry for your brother, but nothing is going to change!" A barrage of stars and fire shoot at Sans, forcing him to teleport over and over to avoid the attacks.

"pap! if you can hear me then i kinda need you to do something! anything! papyrus! d-dad! heck, i'll take a response from tori or undyne, or anyone! please, wake up!" He shoots bones at Asriel, but he can feel his energy quickly disappearing. "who knows, i might be joining you for that nap, nyssa."

"You keep calling for help, but nobody comes." Asriel shakes his head. "How pathetic. Looks like this is the end of the smiley trashbag."

"no, you're wrong. nyssa gave everyone the help to stay strong, and i can keep them fighting to answer me. maybe i'm not the best one for this job, but…" Sans teleports away as Asriel's blaster appears and he shoots. "they're there, and they can hear me."

"You're just delusional."

"MY BROTHER IS… SANS…" Sans freezes for a moment as Papyrus' voice reaches him.

"p-papyrus! pap! h-hey! you can hear me! come on, bro, you can get out of that guy!" Sans holds his hand out, and Asriel's smile disappears. Sans throws his hand to the side, and Asriel flies off. "you got this bro! you're the coolest! don't let this guy hold you back!"

"BROTHER, YOU KNOW YOU'RE… YOU'RE THE ONLY FRIEND I HAD, FOR SO LONG…" Suddenly, the room disappears, and Sans finds himself standing in front of his brother, though Papyrus' face is blurry.

"p-pap… papy. come on now, you're the coolest guy i know. besides, you've got a lot of friends now. like nyssa! we'll both nyssa if you don't come back to us. heh." The blur becomes a bit clearer, and Sans can see a smile on Papyrus' face. "pap, we need you. you've gotta come back and help us fight. you're so amazing bro. you're even fighting against having your soul absorbed. you can go the rest of the way."

"YOU'RE… YOU'RE RIGHT!" The blur completely disappears, and Papyrus looks at Sans. "HOW COULD I EVER THINK OF STOPPING? I HAVE TOO MANY PEOPLE TO PROTECT! TOO MANY FANS TO MAKE HAPPY! BROTHER, I'LL KEEP FIGHTING!" Sans smiles.

"pap, i'm…" Suddenly, Sans is back in front of Asriel. He looks around, but Papyrus is nowhere to be found. He hears the sound of a blaster, and he looks just in time to see the bullets coming at him. He hastily dives to the side, avoiding the hit, but it's almost immediately followed by another round of bullets, then another. He continues to dodge, until suddenly the energy beam shoots at him. The beam is wide, and despite his panicked attempt at dodging, it hits. Sans is thrown back into the wall. He slides down until he's sitting on the floor. "h-heh… looks like i'm… n-not best s-suited for this j-job… s-sorry, nyssa…" He looks at Asriel as another blaster appears. The beam of light lands on Sans' chest, but Sans closes his eyes. He hears the blaster fire. "s-see you in the r-reset…"


	22. Chapter 22

Nyssa is standing in the middle of the fight, her arms out towards monsters, shields up, guarding against Flowey's attacks. She looks around, her heart skipping a beat.

"Wh… h-how…" She hears Flowey's laughter and looks at him.

"What's wrong Nyssa? Not the timeline you expected to wake up in?" She glares at him.

"What did you do?" She shouts. Sans looks at Nyssa in confusion.

"nyssa, what's wrong?" Nyssa looks at Sans, and she feels a pain in her chest.

"Sans… Sans I'm sorry. I… I think he reset. I was knocked out, everyone was taken, it was just you and me and I left you… I-I'm… I'm sorry." She feels tears fill her eyes.

"h-hey, calm down. look, we're all here now. if there was a reset, then you can tell us how to change things for the better since, you know, you actually remember them." He smiles at Nyssa, but she grits her teeth.

"I…" She sees Flowey's arms move, and she glares up at him. "I'll try."

"Try, try, and try again. I'm going to win though." Flowey says as he lifts his arms high. Nyssa throws her hands up into the air and creates a shield above the group.

"If you were winning before then why did you reset?"

"Because, you weren't there." He brings his arms down hard on the shield, cracking it. Nyssa feels the wind get knocked out of her from the blow, but she continues to maintain the broken shield. "This is all for you now! This whole show of power! All of their deaths! This is to make you suffer! I want you to hurt like I have! I want you to feel alone, watching the only reasons you have for living just die! After all Nyssa, you and I, we're so alike, and I know this is the only way to really make you regret taking Chara, and ruining our dream!" He presses down harder, but the shield stays strong.

"If you want me weak, you shouldn't have jumped back to the start of the fight." Nyssa says with a smirk. "I still have energy here!" She bends her knees a bit, then straightens them out, jumping up. The shield moves with her, pushing back against Flowey.

"Exactly…" When Nyssa lands she doesn't touch the ground, but a vine. She slips on the round vine and falls backwards, losing her shield. Flowey's arms fall down hard, smashing some of the monsters.

" _NO! EVERYONE, FALL BACK! DON'T LET ANYONE ELSE GET HURT!_ " Nyssa looks in horror at Flowey's arms.

"N… N-no… No, I…" The tears slide down her cheeks. "No!" She screams. "You stupid kid!" She gets to her feet, glaring at Flowey. "You think you have to hurt others because you suffered? What a childish idea! You should just die yourself!" Sans and Gaster look at Nyssa in shock.

"n-nyssa…" Nyssa looks at Sans.

"Sans, I… I can't do much, but I need some sort of weapon. I'm not going to just sit back and let you all fight! I won't watch everyone get taken away or killed! Not again!"

"nyssa, you don't have to fight. we need you supporting u…" Nyssa glares at Sans, and he hesitates. "a-alright, but i still think you should stay back here." A bone appears in front of Nyssa. She reaches out for it, but she hesitates before grabbing it. "don't do anything crazy, okay? we need you." Nyssa looks at the bone, then at Flowey, and finally at Sans.

"I… I-I'm not gonna do anything too rash. I can't just let things continue though. This has to stop." She glares at Flowey. "There can't be anymore resets."

"trust me, i don't want any resets either. just… don't lose who you are, okay?" Nyssa nods.

"You idiots really think things'll be different, don't you? Well, why don't we just move things along then?" Vines shoot up from beneath everyone, grabbing them and throwing them into the air. Nyssa watches as the ground gets further and further away from her.

" _SANS, CATCH NYSSA!_ " Gaster shouts. Nyssa feels her body become heavy, and rather than continue upward, her body suddenly jerks to the right, and into Sans' arms. She looks at Gaster and sees that his eyes are glowing, and his arm is extended towards them. She also sees the vines have followed the group into the air, and monsters are being grabbed. " _TELEPORT!_ " Gaster is grabbed by the vines, but Nyssa is suddenly on the ground, at the entrance to the room. She hears the shouts of pain from the monsters, but when she looks up they're already gone.

"N… No! Not again! No!" She cries out.

"You really thought things would change? In the end, I still win!" Flowey laughs. She sees the light of his transformation begin, so Nyssa grabs Sans' hand and runs out of the room, and back to the throne room.

"nyssa, what are you doing?" Sans asks.

"Sans…" Nyssa lets go and looks at him as the two stand amidst the yellow flowers. "I… Last time I healed everyone, and I passed out, leaving you to try and call out to the monsters that he absorbed and, hopefully, pull their power out of him, or even cause them to fight him from the inside. Obviously, that… didn't work. I don't know what went wrong though."

"well, i'd tell you if i could remember. if you try that again, will you pass out this time too? i know you've used a lot of energy already, but maybe the problem last time had something to do with me trying to call out by myself. i'm not the loudest." He smiles, and Nyssa smiles as well.

"No, I think I'll stay away if I try healing them. I… Don't know what'll end up happening though. Flowey is actually the prince who died, Asriel. I don't know how, but he is, and right now he's transforming into a pretty scary form, one that looks more like his original body, I think." She looks back at the exit to the throne room. "We've gotta go back and face him."

"well, don't go passing out on me, okay? and, let me do the fighting." He glances at the bone in Nyssa's hand. "i know you're upset, you've made that clear, but you're not the only one." Nyssa opens her mouth to speak, but she closes it without saying a word. She looks at Sans' sympathetic smile, and sighs.

"I'm sorry…" She smiles back. "I… took this a bit far myself, didn't I?" She looks down at the bone. "I… I just, I want to be useful, and I want to protect everyone. You all… I used to wish I was dead, back on the surface. But all of you showed me a kindness and love I hadn't known." She looks up at Sans. "I want to protect all of that, and all of you. I'm not strong, and I'm not a fighter, but I'm… I'm trying."

"fighter or not, you've been protecting us just fine. we're a family, nyssa. you don't ever have to repay us for loving you, it's just what we do." They hear the sound of thunder and look back at the doorway. "welp, looks like if we don't hurry back, he's gonna come after us."

"Yeah… Sans, thank you." Nyssa smiles. "Let's get our family back."

"heh. let's." The two run back, and they find Asriel waiting for them.

"I was worried you decided you didn't wanna play with me. I was ready to chase after you two." He says.

"What? Us? Runaway and leave you all alone?" Nyssa smirks. "That'd be mean. You seem like you really need some friends, so we just wanted to get ourselves ready." She holds her hand up. "Well, I don't know what happened last time, but let's try this again." Her healing light reaches out and wraps around both Asriel and Sans.

"Again? This was useless! All that it did last time was extend the fight between Sans and I, before he ultimately died. I'm just sad you missed it." Asriel smirks. "It was really pathetic. He suddenly panicked and got overwhelmed by my attacks. He's so weak, it doesn't take much to kill him, if you can get him to stop jumping around." Sans glares at Asriel.

"Well, this time you get me to help stop you. Sound like fun?"

"Having you hear is the whole reason I went back. I want you to watch me kill your favorite little skeleton. Maybe I'll go back again, and do it over, and over, and over! You'll have no choice but to watch everyone you love suffer and die, because you're too weak to do anything about it!"

"No, Asriel. Not this time." Nyssa glances at Sans. "This time, we're going to stop you, and we're going to save everyone."


	23. Chapter 23

Nyssa and Sans dodge and block Asriel's attacks. Nyssa holds on tightly to her borrowed bone while trying to keep up her shields for herself and Sans. Asriel throws everything at them, at a rapid pace, forcing the two to concentrate on defense more than anything else.

"nyssa, if we're gonna wake anyone up from inside of him we gotta start now!" Sans shouts. Nyssa grits her teeth as she's pushed back a couple of feet when Asriel's blaster hits her shield.

"I know!" She dives to the side, allowing her shield to disappear, and the attack to fly past her. "Alright! I know all of you are in there!" Nyssa scrambles to her feet to avoid a lightning strike, and she keeps running to avoid the repeated strikes. Her breath quickly runs out, but still, she shouts. "Papyrus! Gaster! If you hear me, then please, let me know! Please! Pap! Gaster!" Sans glances at Nyssa as she skids to a stop and brings up a shield just in time to block an exploding star.

"Keep calling! But nobody will come!" Asriel laughs. Nyssa grits her teeth as she glares at him. She holds her hand out and her healing light once again shoots out and wraps around Asriel.

"Papyrus! Gaster! I need you two! Sans needs you two! Please!" She sees her healing light disappear, except for two small heart shaped spots that hover over Asriel's chest. Nyssa glances at Sans, but he doesn't seem to notice the lights. "Papyrus! Gaster!" The hearts flicker, and then Asriel suddenly disappears. Nyssa and Sans look at each other, confused. They then look to see Papyrus and Gaster are standing in front of them, their faces blurred.

"p-pap! dad!" Tears fill Sans' eyes.

"Papyrus! Gaster!" Nyssa smiles.

"LAZYBONES, WHY ARE YOU STANDING THERE? I… CAN NOT DO ALL THE WORK FOR YOU ANYMORE. NO MATTER WHAT I DO, NO ONE NOTICES."

" _SANS... NYSSA... WHY WOULD YOU EVEN BOTHER TO CALL FOR ME? I... DON'T DESERVE TO BE SAVED._ "

"What are you two talking about?" Nyssa smiles at them. "You two… you're both very important to us."

"yeah, you are. come on pap, dad, you two need to snap out of this. we can't win this fight without you two." The blur over their faces lessens, but doesn't disappear.

" _ALL I'VE DONE IS HURT AND DESTROY. TO BE FORGIVEN... I COULD NEVER BE FORGIVEN BY YOU, BY ANYONE._ "

"OF COURSE YOU TWO WOULD SAY THAT. NO ONE ELSE BELIEVES IT THOUGH."

"No! You two are wrong!" Nyssa shouts. "Listen to us, you boneheads! Open your eye sockets and look at how many people love you both, how many people need you both. Monsters, humans, everyone is depending on you both to come back to us. Please, Papyrus, Gaster." The blurs lessen significantly, but they don't completely disappear.

"listen, i'm not as enthusiastic as nyssa, but she's right. pap, bro, i need you. you are a protector to a lot of people, me in particular. i don't know what i'd do without you. and dad…" Sans hesitates. "you… probably could have saved yourself and maybe nyssa before. you even could have never of shown up, or when you were first revived you could have continued your work and not cared about pap or i… dad, i… forgive you, for what you did. you regret hurting me, and hurting pap. you care… so, how could i stay upset?" A few tears fall down Gaster's face and the blurs disappear. The two skeletons smile at the fighting duo.

"SANS, NYSSA! I… I FELT DOWN FOR A MOMENT THERE, BUT YOU TWO ARE RIGHT! THERE IS NO GIVING UP NOW, EVEN IF PEOPLE DON'T ACT LIKE THEY NOTICE ME! I KNOW THEY NEED ME!"

" _SANS, YOU... THANK YOU, MY SON. I... LOVE YOU, VERY MUCH. AND NYSSA, THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME MY LIFE BACK, AND MY FAMILY BACK. YOU TWO... WE ARE CHEERING FOR YOU. KEEP FIGHTING._ " The two disappear, and Sans and Nyssa find themselves back in the fight. Sans spins around, almost not noticing the bullets shooting at him from Asriel's blaster. Nyssa creates a shield around Sans and herself.

"Sans! Are you okay?"

"yeah, just… didn't expect them to disappear like that." The shields drop, and the fight goes on. "we gotta do that again! with their souls gone, he's gotten weaker!" Asriel grits his teeth.

"Weaker? I think you're mistaken!" Lightning strikes come down, and as Nyssa and Sans run and dodge, the two suddenly run into each other, making them both stumble around for a moment.

"ow. i know i've got a thick skull, but you don't need to test how thick." Sans says with a smile.

"Just trying to en-lightning you on the dangers of not watching where you're going." Sans laughs as Nyssa creates a shield above their heads, just before a strike comes down on them. Swords materialize in Asriel's hands, and he flies at them, swinging the swords. Sans teleports away, and Nyssa creates shields, blocking the strikes aimed at her. However, she sees her shields crack every time they're hit, and she's forced to recreate them, over and over.

"nyssa, are you holding up okay?" Sans asks as a set of blasters appear and fire at Asriel, forcing him to back off of Nyssa.

"Getting tired, but otherwise I'm fine."

"Tired is no good." Asriel smirks. "I think it's time you really got to suffer." Asriel holds his hands up, and two blasters appear. They both are aimed at Nyssa. Without hesitation, they fire. One fires bullets, but the other goes straight to the energy beam. Nyssa puts up her shield, but the beam shatters it. The bullets go on longer than the beam, and they pierce through Nyssa's torso.

"nyssa!" Sans shouts as she falls back, blood spilling out of her. Nyssa lets out a painful cry as he body quickly works to heal itself. Sans runs to Nyssa, and she looks at him. "nyssa, y…" Sans is suddenly blasted by the second energy beam that hadn't fired yet. Nyssa's eyes go wide as she watches his body turn to dust and fall to the ground.

"S-Sans…?" Asriel laughs, but Nyssa hears nothing. "Sans? …Sans!" She shouts. Nyssa reaches her hand out, but Asriel creates a third blaster and fires at the dust. It's either destroyed or blown away, leaving nothing for Nyssa to heal.

"You thought you could bring him back? Ha! Ha ha ha ha!" Asriel laughs louder. "You've lost everything! You thought this place was your heaven? Welcome to the underground hell!" As Asriel continues to laugh and gloat, Nyssa slowly gets to her feet. Her body is shakey, and thought the holes in her torso have healed, her clothes are still riddled.

"You…" She looks at Asriel. "You really think this'll stop me?" Nyssa looks down at the bone that's still in her hand, and her grip tightens. "Sans…" She feels the tears fall, but she looks Asriel in the eye. "I will find a way to bring Sans back. You didn't completely destroy him, however much you think you did. So long as I can find a speck of his dust, I will bring back my friend… My brother. In the meantime, you and I aren't finished."

"You want to keep going? You can't win! You'll just be killed over and over, until I get bored." Asriel shakes his head. "Well, I'm all for making you miserable. And when I get tired of killing you, we'll reset, and you get to watch everyone die all over again." The swords appear in his hands once again. Nyssa feels her body continue to shake, though it's not all from exhaustion.

"I told you before! This is where it ends!" Nyssa shouts, surprising Asriel. The tears continue to fall as she glares at him. "I won't let you reset anymore!" Nyssa runs at Asriel. He smirks and runs at her as well. However, Nyssa suddenly drops to the floor, using her momentum to slide under Asriel's lifted foot. As she slides, she creates a shield above herself. The shield hits Asriel in the gut. She twists her hand, and the shield both pulls Asriel back, and to the right, making him fall, but not on her.

"Asgore! Are you in there?" Nyssa shouts as she gets back to her feet. "You wanted redemption! Use your strength and help save everyone!" She sees a light flicker on Asriel's chest as she gets to his feet. "Come on! You want Toriel to forgive you? Then stand up and fight for the people who're suffering!" Two lights flicker, and as they flicker they get brighter and brighter. Asriel throws stars at Nyssa, and they explode all around her. She dodges some, but others hit.

"Stop shouting for people who'll never answer!" Asriel shouts.

"Asgore! Toriel! You both hear me, I can see it! Fight! Free yourself! I need you both!" Asriel suddenly disappears from Nyssa's vision, and he's replaced by his parents, though their faces are blurred.

"My child… how I have failed you… I have failed all the children." Toriel quietly says.

"Toriel, no, y…" Nyssa starts to speak, but she's cut off when flames shoot at her from Asgore.

"One more soul… Surely, one more… I…" Tears fall down Asgore's blurred face. Nyssa looks between the two of them.

"Asgore, Toriel… You both answered me! You both know want to help me! Please, you have to listen to me and fight Asriel!" When Nyssa says 'Asriel' the blurs get worse. "You…"

"My… my son… my precious…" Toriel seems shaken. Asgore doesn't say a word. Nyssa opens her mouth, then closes it again. She sighs.

"Please… You two want to protect everyone. You both seem to love everyone dearly. If you're going to protect the monsters, then you have to move forward. I've heard about your pasts, about the pains, but if you stay stuck in your failures then you'll never reach your goals! Fight against the person who is destroying everything! If you two can get free then he'll lose so much power! I can stand a chance at saving you all!" The blurs lessen greatly, but they don't disappear.

"I've always failed as a mother, a caretaker. I only wish for everyone to be happy and safe."

"My people… My family… I…" Asgore seems more receptive to Nyssa.

"Fight! You two can't sit on the sidelines! You're too powerful, too important! Fight with me! Please! I need you both!" The blur disappears from Asgore, and then Toriel seems to recover in response.

"I'm the king! You're right, I must fight! I have resolved to protect my people! I can't be weak and stand back anymore!"

"To simply stand back would be what I've always hated. I… I will fight, for the sake of all monsters and humans." Toriel and Asgore smile at Nyssa, and she smiles back.

"Nyssa… Stay determined. You are the hope of monsters and humans." Asgore says, and Nyssa nods. The two of them disappear, and she's once again fighting Asriel. As he summons his lightning strikes, Nyssa sees a flicker of confusion, then frustration. She smirks.

"We're doing it Sans. We're… We're definitely gonna win this time." She quietly says as she starts running, barely avoiding the strikes that follow right behind her.


	24. Chapter 24

Nyssa lets out a shout of pain as a lightning strike hits her, sending a jolt of electricity through her body. For a few moments, her heart stops beating. However, it quickly starts up again. She feels her body shake as she drops to her knees. Her lungs barely fill up with air before it escapes her once again. She looks up at Asriel, and he's smirking.

"You really thought you could dodge forever?" He asks.

"I don't need to dodge forever. I just need to stay awake long enough." Nyssa gets back to her feet. Stars shoot at her, slicing her arms and legs. She barely avoids lethal damage from them. However, the third explosion is close enough to throw her off her feet.

"Without that trashbag you're so pathetic." Asriel laughs. "You really aren't a fighter! Other humans have shown up and done more damage than you! Children! Look at you. You're not some little kid, but you're even more useless." He shakes his head.

"Ha… You've really gotten weak yourself. I mean, that lightning stopped my heart, but that's it. Really, that's not hard to do, I'm sure." Nyssa says with one eye closed. "You know, I think Sans and I have really weakened you. I wonder how many more monsters I have to wake up before you can't maintain that weird form of yours." Asriel's smirk disappears. He grits his teeth, and a barrage of stars and lightning rain down on Nyssa. She takes in a deep breath, then she holds her arms out. A shield surrounds her, blocking the raining attacks. She sees the shield crack instantly, but still, she holds it together. "Why don't we try for Undyne? Between her and Papyrus, I've learn everything I know about fighting. It's not much, but it's so much more than I knew before!"

"Call all you want! It won't do you any good!" A bright green heart glows brightly in Asirle's chest, and Nyssa smiles.

"Come on Undyne. You've got so much fight in you! Answer me!" The world around Nyssa disappears, but she doesn't drop her shield. Blue spears assault her from all sides, but none break through. She sees Undyne in front of her, face blurred.

"For King Asgore, and for all of my friends, I will capture humans and protect everyone! That's my job!" She creates more spears and throws them at Nyssa, but they bounce off her shield and disappear.

"Undyne, please! Humans aren't your enemy! Not all of us!" Nyssa shouts. She shrinks her shield, and her breathing becomes steadier. As spears continue to fly at her, she moves the shield around, or makes a second small shield, to block the attacks. "Wake up Undyne! You have to wake up in order to protect everyone!"

"I'm protecting them by eliminating the human threats!" Nyssa grits her teeth as a spear gets past her and hits her leg. She drops down onto her knees, but she doesn't heal the wound, even after the spear vanishes.

"We're friends Undyne! I know… I know I've only spent a little bit of time with you, but between that and all the monsters who love you so much, I know you so well! I know you care! I've seen you with Papyrus! The way you give everything your all! Please, be strong! Please, don't let yourself be defeated by Asriel!" Undyne freezes. The blur lessens, then grows, then lessens again. Nyssa smiles. "Undyne! You're the captain of the royal guard, right? Listen to me! You are the last person who can be allowed to remain under the control of some power hungry flower, goat, thing!" The blur disappears, and Undyne lets out a shout.

"You're right!" She gives Nyssa a big grin. "Ha! To be controlled, how pathetic! I'm stronger than that! Thanks Nyssa, for reminding me." Nyssa lets out a sigh of relief. "Nyssa… Hey, I know this is a lot, but I can feel Alphys is in pain. Please… Save her for me. I know I can't, so don't let me down, or I'll have to beat you to a pulp when this is all over with." Nyssa laughs lightly.

"I'll do my best." Undyne disappears, and she's replaced by Asriel. Nyssa creates a shield above herself and uses it to pull herself back onto her feet. Her left leg is useless, but she still doesn't heal it.

"Look at you." Asriel shakes his head. "You are so pathetic. I don't even touch you and you still get injured."

"Yeah, this is annoying. It's hurts so bad, too." Nyssa pushes some hair out of her face. "But if I'm gonna get killed, it'll heal then. Might as well save the energy, right?" She leans on her right leg and her shield. "Listen, Asriel… You don't seem to understand, but I'm not going to simply allow you to continue with this. So long as I'm alive, you're gonna lose this fight. And, as you know, it's real hard to kill me." Asriel's swords appear, and Nyssa grits her teeth, but she forces herself to continue smiling, making Asriel glare at her.

"You've really taken too much from the trashbag. You're even smiling like him." He smirks. "Well, that's just means I'll enjoy killing you even more."

"You're at your limit, Asriel! I'll make myself keep going. You can't stop me! You can't beat me!" Nyssa shouts as Asriel flies at her. He swings his swords, but she drops to the ground, avoiding the blades. "Alphys! I need you to answer me! Please, Undyne needs you to come out! I need you too! We all do!" She holds her hands up and creates a shield, blocks the tips of Asriel's swords as he attempts to plunge them into her chest. He pushes down, cracking the shield. "Alphys! Answer me! Alphys!" She sees a weak light flicker. "You hear me! I need you Alphys! Answer!" She rolls to the side as her shields shatter, then quickly tries to get to her feet. However, her left leg fails her, and she falls to her hands and knees. When she looks up she sees Alphys, face blurred, standing before her. "Alphys…"

"Why… Why would anyone need me? I've done terrible things. They say they forgive me, but…"

"Alphys, listen to me." Nyssa creates a shield and uses it to pull herself onto her feet. "Your mistakes were to save everyone. Your mistakes were fixed. You didn't really hurt anyone. Please…" Nyssa smiles at her. "You're so important and valuable to all of us. You work hard, and you have a genuine heart. Alphys, I need you to believe in yourself, and stop letting your soul be controlled." The blur lessens, but it's almost an indistinguishable amount.

"I'm worthless, trash, garbage… I shouldn't… I-I shouldn't… live…" Nyssa opens her mouth to speak, but, for a few moments, nothing comes out. Then she creates a long shield, extending out towards Alphys. She slowly limps closer to the yellow monster.

"You are anything but worthless. Alphys, you are sweet, and you care. You work hard, and you… You are so loved." The blur grows stronger. "You are valuable. Why else would Undyne tell me to make sure I save you?" The blur weakens greatly. "You deserve to live. You deserve to be loved. You made mistakes, but you worked to fix them too. You cared for the people you hurt, and you… you did everything you could. Sometimes, that's everything." She reaches Alphys, a few tears falling down her face. "You… deserve all the love we give you. You screwed up, but we all do… Please, don't forget the people who love you. I've seen how much others mean to you, so it's time you finally understood how much you mean to them."

"I-I…" Alphys starts to speak, but Nyssa wraps her arms around her in a tight hug. The blur seems to almost shatter as tears fall down Alphys' face. She hugs Nyssa back.

"Nyssa! I… I-I… I w-want to be loved! I w-want to live! I-I won't give up! N-not when I-I can help!" Nyssa steps back, using her shield for balance still, a smile on her face, along with tears.

"I'm glad."

"You… You're so…" Alphys looks Nyssa up and down.

"I'm fine." Nyssa giggles. "I can tell that Asriel is weak. Taking out your soul… I think that's the last piece. With it gone, I believe I can stop him."

"Y-you haven't t-taken our souls o-out." Nyssa looks at Alphys in surprise. "W-we're all t-together still, I-I can feel it… But… W-we're fighting!" Alphys smiles. "We're all fighting f-for you, with you. I-I believe… I-I believe, together, w-we're all ready to end this. I-I can feel their hearts, their s-souls… We're with you, Nyssa."

"Well…" Nyssa looks down, then back up at Alphys, a confident smile on her lips. "I can't give up now. If you're all still counting on me, then I'm going to end this. Then we…" An image of Sans flashes in her mind, and, for a moment, Nyssa's smile disappears. "I'll save everyone. I won't let anyone I love just disappear."

"K-keep going Nyssa." Alphys' words fade as she disappears from Nyssa's vision. Once again, Nyssa is faced with Asriel, still holding his swords. He slices at her, and she doesn't move. The blades run through her body. She gasps for air as the pain hits her, but almost right away her healing light covers her, and she's pieced back together before Asriel's swing even finishes.

"You're so weak!" He shouts.

"Weak…" Nyssa smiles as her legs shake. "Ha… I guess, in a sense, you're not wrong. I'm pretty weak, and I've always been weak. But…" She creates a shield around Asriel, surprising him. "I'll make myself strong enough to carry the people who lean on me!" She throws Asriel to the side, and her shield disappears at the last moment, making him slam into a wall. Asriel glares at her.

"Trying to copy that skeleton still?"

"Copy? To be honest, there's only so many basic types of attacks that it's bound to look a bit like that." Nyssa continues to smile, and Asriel grits his teeth.

"Why are you smiling? Everything you're working for is pointless! You're barely standing! You're friends are all gone! That skeleton is so scattered that you'll never revive him!"

"I really don't believe that. I mean, sure, it'll take a ton of energy to piece him back together when he's missing some pieces, but I'll manage, somehow." Asriel growls as he creates a blaster and shoots the bullets at Nyssa. She dodges, though her movements are sluggish.

"Stop smiling! You're useless!"

"Not really." Nyssa sees a group of green hearts, glowing brightly in Asriel's chest. "I'm… far more useful than I ever realized. Besides, when I've got my friend's with me, I can do pretty much anything, even believe in myself, which is a miracle in and of itself." She looks up at Asriel, but then a small flicker makes her look back at the hearts. Just above the group, she sees a single, small heart. It weakly flickers with the gentle beating of the hearts below it.

"You're alone though! You're useless! Worthless! Stop…" Asriel fires his blaster at Nyssa, and she's too slow to dodge. However, she finds, while it does still hurt, it doesn't kill her. When the energy from the blaster disappears, Nyssa finds Asriel is breathing heavily. "You can't… You can't be happy! You can't keep having such faith, like some idiot! It's sickening! This is enough! I'm going to stop playing around and finish you!" A flash of light forces Nyssa to look away for a moment, but when she looks back, Asriel's form has changed once more. "You've pushed me this far, but this is it!" Nyssa looks at the disjointed figure of Asriel, and she feels her heart stop a moment. However, the green hearts that surround him are beating even stronger than before, and their lights are even brighter. At the center of them all is the single heart on Asriel's chest. Its glow is weak.

"Asriel…" Nyssa feels her skin burn, and she quickly creates a shield around herself. When she looks up, she sees fire is raining down on her.

"Die already! Just die and stay dead! I'm sick of this!" He shouts as little beams of energy shoot out from his hands and fly at Nyssa. She dodges some, while keep her shield above herself.

"Asriel!" The heart glows brighter for a moment, and Nyssa pauses. "…Asriel! You don't want this, do you?" She quietly asks. A pained expression flickers across Asriel's face.

"I don't know what you're talking about! Just shut up!" The energy stops, but the fire doesn't. Nyssa smiles.

"Ah... This is hard for me too, you know? But… Asriel… I know what happened to you. I've heard the stories. I've spoken with your mom a few times… You... you never wanted to hurt anyone, did you?"

"Shut up!" He shouts. The fire lets up a bit.

"If you really want to stop me, you could reset. You're not resetting though." As the fire stops, the tiny heart glows even brighter. "This is it, isn't it? You… You're…" Nyssa laughs lightly. "You're kinda like me, right? You saw the world as some bleak, painful thing. You just wanted something to distract you, right? That's why you want to reset, rather than simply destroy anything. You want to start over, to try again, right?" Asriel simply looks at her, tears in his eyes. Now, all the hearts beat in unison, including the one in the center. "Asriel…"

"You don't understand. How could you? I've been so empty… So alone… Y-you took away the only person who understood me!"

"Who says I can't understand?" Nyssa feels her legs begin to give way beneath her, so she creates a thin shield in front of herself and leans on it. "Asriel… Let's stop this. I…" She looks down at her hands. She's still holding her borrowed bone. She then looks up at Asriel. "I never did want to fight anyone." She half smiles as she drops the bone. Asriel looks surprised. "I can see it Asriel. You… You know you don't want to fight either. We don't have to end things like this. I won't let us end it like this, a constant loop of anger and hatred and pain." She takes in a deep breath, then she starts walking towards Asriel. As she walks, she creates small shields in front of her, and like steps, the lead her up so she can reach Asriel's face. "I… I'm not very good at being angry, or hating anyone. I don't want the practice either." She sees the tears fall from Asriel's eyes. In his hands she can see a flicker of colorful energy, but it never becomes anything more than that.

"That's all this… this life… its…" She reaches him and places a hand on his cheek. The two look into each other's eyes, and she smiles at him.

"Asriel… I've been spending our fight trying to save my friends, but… Someone needs to save you too."

"This is dumb. After all I did, you want to save me?" He smiles. "How… How pathetic."

"I'll be pathetic, that's okay. Just… Listen to me, alright? Let's end this. Everyone here deserves a happy ending to all of this, including you." Asriel laughs quietly.

"I… I want to keep fighting, but… But I can't. I haven't been able to feel something like this in so long. With everyone's souls inside of me though, I… I can feel it. Love… I…" He reaches up and gently places a hand over her's. "I can feel how much they love you, and… And they seem like they're… They're saying they love… me…"

"Then I think we know what to do." Nyssa takes a step back. "It's time to let them go Asriel. It's time to let go." Asriel looks her up and down a moment, but he smiles.

"You've… changed." He quietly says.

"I think you're right." She pushes some hair out of her face. "I finally let myself change." Asriel looks down, then he looks at the barrier. The hearts all beat faster and glow brighter.

"I… I can feel their hearts all beating together. The ones you called to, the others I've taken… The power of all these monsters united, plus these human souls… I…" He looks back at Nyssa. "Before I let them go, I'm going to use their united strength, and I believe I can break the barrier." Nyssa looks surprised. She feels a tingling of fear in the back of her mind and images of her past come back to the surface. She holds her hand out, and, with a pained smile, her healing light reaches out and wraps around Asriel.

"Alright. I'm rooting for you. It's time these monsters got their wish." Asriel nods. He turns to face the barrier, but then he looks back at Nyssa.

"Nyssa… th-thank you. You revived a part of my I thought was long dead. I… I haven't felt love in so long… You could have kept fighting, but… You're really strange, you know that?" He smiles, and she smiles back.

"Hey, I like strange." He looks forward, and as he holds his hands up, Nyssa feels her shield give way below her. She falls to the ground as her eyes shut, and everything goes black.


	25. Chapter 25

As Nyssa opens her eyes, she finds herself staring up at a familiar ceiling, with a familiar blanket wrapped around her. She sits up, and she finds she's in her room. Her paints are messily set in a box at the foot of her bed, and a shelf with some books seems to be gathering the tiniest bit of dust. Outside her window, she can see some snow is gently falling. Her mind swirls with images of her fight, her friends, and the broken hearted Asriel. Slowly, she turns and puts her feet on the ground, dragging her blanket off the bed. When she stands she falls right back, and she groans.

"I must have been out for a long time." She mutters. She then pauses a moment. "Wait…" She stands once again, this time maintaining her balance. She then takes a few shaky steps to her shoes. Once she puts them on, she walks outside, not even noticing that she's wearing some of Sans' clothes instead of her own, that is, until she feels the chill of the snow against her legs. She looks down and sees the shorts and plain white shirt. "Th…" She looks up, towards the town, but the only monsters she sees are carrying boxes and taking down decorations. She walks to the main house and opens the door. Inside she finds the house has been packed up, except for the larger furniture. "P-Papyrus?" She looks to the kitchen, but it's empty.

"NYSSA?" Nyssa looks upstairs as Papyrus walks out of his room. A few tears fall down Nyssa's face at the sight of the tall skeleton.

"Papyrus!" She runs to the stairs and up them, then jumps into Papyrus' arms. He catches her as she sobs into his sweatshirt.

"NYSSA, C-CALM DOWN. IT'S OKAY, I'M OKAY." He says as he holds her tight.

"Papyrus! I… I'm so happy to see you! Th-that means… everyone…" She pulls back a little and looks up at him.

" _EVERYONE ASRIEL TOOK IS BACK, SAFE AND SOUND._ " Nyssa looks past Papyrus, into his room. There she sees Gaster, standing next to some boxes.

"Gaster!" She smiles, and he smiles back.

" _HELLO NYSSA. I'M GLAD YOU'RE AWAKE._ " Nyssa wipes some tears away as she finally takes a step back from Papyrus.

"I… I'm so happy to see all of you." She quietly says. "I… I was so scared. I mean, fighting Asriel by myse…" She trails off. "S-Sans…" Papyrus and Gaster lose their smiles. "Sans! I need to go revive him!" Nyssa turns to leave.

" _NYSSA, WAIT!_ " She stops and looks at Gaster as he walks out of the room and over to Sans'. He opens the door and motions for her to follow. She does. When Nyssa walks into the room she sees it's been packed up as well, except for a bowl of dust and her borrowed bone that she had dropped. " _WHEN WE ALL WOKE UP, ASRIEL WAS STILL THERE. HE WAS SITTING NEXT TO YOUR BODY. NO ONE COULD REMEMBER ONE HAPPENED AFTER WE WERE ABSORBED, BUT HE TOLD US EVERYTHING, INCLUDING ABOUT SANS... THIS IS ALL WE COULD FIND OF HIM. I GRABBED THE BONE AS WELL, BECAUSE IT SHOULD HAVE SOME OF HIS MAGIC EMBEDDED IN IT. I THOUGHT IT MIGHT HELP YOU._ " Nyssa walks up to the bowl and looks at the dust. It's a dull gray, and it's clearly only a part of Sans.

"I…" She feels the tears gently slipping down her cheeks. "I'll do my best."

" _WE KNOW YOU WILL._ " She glances back. Papyrus is in the doorway, watching. Nyssa takes in a deep breath, then she holds both of her hands up. Her healing light reaches out and wraps around the dust and the bone. The two things lift into the air, and the dust wraps itself around the bone. Nyssa can feel this healing wave start to weaken, so without hesitation she sends out more of her power. Then again, and again, and again. She never allows the green light to fade as it slowly turns the dust covered bone into a shape she's all too familiar with. The tears fall faster as, finally, Nyssa's light disappears. Standing before her is a dazed Sans. His eyes are shut, but she can see his mouth moving, and hear a quiet groan coming from him.

"S-Sans?" She quietly says. He opens his eyes and looks at her. The corners of his mouth turn up into his usual grin.

"huh… this is a sight i was worried i'd never lay eyesockets on aga…" He's cut off as Nyssa practically tackles him, almost knocking him to the ground. The tears pour down her face as she sobs and holds on tight to him.

"Sans! I-I thought I… Sans!" She cries out as she tightens her hold on him. A few tears escape his eyes as he hugs her back.

"h-hey, c-cut that out. you're making me cry." He quietly says, before finally he breaks down as well. Nyssa can hear Papyrus cry as well, and, though he makes no sound, she assumes Gaster is also in tears.

"Sans… I-I'm so happy to have you back. I-I was so scared… I-I… I'm so happy you're back! Don't you dare leave me again, you bonehead!" He chuckles, and she giggles. Finally, the two separate.

"heh, i'll do my best." They both wipe the tears off their faces.

" _I HATE TO BREAK THIS UP, BUT, SANS, YOU MAY WNAT TO CONSIDER GETTING DRESSED._ " Gaster says. Nyssa and Sans both look down, and both blush. She quickly turns around.

"I-I'll be in th-the h-hallway." She says as she runs out of the room. She can hear Gaster snicker as she runs past, and even Sans can't help but give an embarrassed laugh. She gets into the hallway with Papyrus, and Gaster soon follows, closing the door behind himself, and leaving Sans to get dressed in peace. Nyssa leans back against the wall, her face still red.

"THIS IS PERFECT! OUR FAMILY IS FINALLY TOGETHER AGAIN! WE'LL BE ABLE TO LEAVE THE UNDERGROUND TOGETHER!" Nyssa looks at Papyrus in surprise.

"L-leave?" Papyrus smiles as he nods.

"OF COURSE. THE PRINCE DESTROYED THE BARRIER, SO WE'RE ALL FREE. EVERYONE IN THE UNDERGROUND IS PACKING UP NOW, WHILE THE KING AND QUEEN SPEAK WITH THE HUMAN LEADERS. UNDYNE IS WITH THEM TOO, AND SOME OF THE GUARDS. THEY'RE GETTING EVERYTHING PREPARED FOR US ALL TO MOVE TO THE SURFACE. I'M SO EXCITED! I'VE BEEN WAITING TO GO OUT THIS WHOLE TIME! I…" Papyrus looks at Sans' door, then back at Nyssa. "I WANTED TO SEE THE SURFACE WITH ALL OF THE PEOPLE I HOLD MOST DEAR, SO I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU AND SANS. I COULD NEVER GO THERE WITHOUT YOU TWO." Nyssa once again feels a tingling of fear, and the expression this causes is not lost on the two skeletons.

" _NYSSA... DO YOU... PERHAPS YOU DON'T WANT TO GO BACK TO THE SURFACE?_ " Nyssa looks down at the floor. She holds her hands out in front of her, then clenches them into fists before she looks back up at the two of them, smiling.

"I… My life on the surface was painful. I climbed the mountain in hopes that I could kill myself and just disappear from this world. So, I can't say I'm eager to go back, but… After everything I've been through, and with how much you've all helped me to change… I'll be fine, so long as I have you all by my side." Papyrus and Gaster both smile at her.

"ALWAYS AND FOREVER, SISTER!" Papyrus hugs Nyssa, and she laughs and hugs him back. The sound of a door opening makes the three of them look to see Sans, dressed in his usual clothes, minus his jacket.

"what? hugs, without me?" He questions. Almost instantly Nyssa runs and hugs him. Papyrus and Gaster both join in the hug, and for a few moments the four of them are inseparable. When they do pull apart, Nyssa remains right in front of Sans, holding both of his hands.

"I kinda don't wanna let you go now." She quietly says as Sans blushes slightly.

"heh, i think i'm okay with that." He looks at Papyrus, then at Gaster. "so, word through the door is that the barrier is down."

" _YES. QUITE A LOT HAS HAPPENED WHILE YOU AND NYSSA WERE... OUT. WE'LL CATCH YOU BOTH UP FULLY, DON'T WORRY._ " Sans nods.

"right, well, i guess that only leaves one thing to do right now." The four of them disappear, and they find themselves standing in the throne room. Sans stumbles back a few steps. "ow… yeah, haven't teleported that many people before. it's a lot harder than i thought it would be."

"OH, YES! LET'S GO LOOK AT THE SURFACE! I'M SO EXCITED!" Papyrus runs out of the room, heading towards the exit. Nyssa giggles.

"He's really happy. I'm glad." She looks at Sans. "Coming?"

"yeah. just needed a sec to get my head straight." The three of them follow after Papyrus. "by the way, nice clothes." Nyssa looks down, then she smirks at him.

"Thanks. Not my first choice, but, hey, they work." Sans chuckles, then he looks down at his own clothes. "You might need a new jacket."

"yeah, i was just thinking the same thing."

"Don't worry. We'll go shopping in town and I'll find you the perfect replacement." Sans smiles at her.

"sounds like fun…" He trails off as they walk out of the cave, and into the light of a sunrise that's just starting to fade. "woah…" Nyssa looks at the sunrise with a smile.

"You know… I've never quite enjoyed the sunrise like I do now. I… never appreciated it so much." She quietly says.

"NYSSA, THIS IS WHAT YOU'VE ALWAYS SEEN? THIS…" Papyrus is at the edge of the cliff. "THIS IS SO BEAUTIFUL… I… I THINK I'LL REALLY LIKE THE SURFACE IF EVERYTHING IS THIS AMAZING." They join him at the edge, with Gaster standing on Papyrus' left, Sans on his right, and Nyssa on Sans' right.

" _THIS IS TRULY ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THINGS I'VE EVER SEEN... TO FINALLY BE OUT HERE..._ " Nyssa looks at the three skeletons. They're all entranced by the scene before them. She looks out, over the trees, to the ocean. She can see the other part of the mountain range to her left, and to her right is a big city, and beyond it are other, smaller cities. She looks back at the skeletons, a warm smile on her lips. She doesn't say anything, but she does grab Sans' hand and squeezes it. He looks at her in surprise at first, but upon seeing her smile, he smiles back. The two then look back out at the world before them, and enjoy the warmth of the rising sun.

"N-Nyssa?" Nyssa looks back, and she sees Asriel standing there, though he's back to looking like a child.

"Asriel?" Sans, Papyrus, and Gaster look back as well. Asriel smiles shyly.

"Y-yeah, it's me. I… I'm glad you're okay…" He glances at Sans, but then he looks down. "I…"

"Hey, I'm glad you're okay too." He looks up in surprise at Nyssa's smile. "Everyone seems alright. In fact, they all seem better than ever… Oh! The human souls!" Nyssa lets go of Sans' hand and starts walking towards the entrance. "Now that this is over, we can…" Asriel shakes his head, and she stops. "What?"

"Nyssa… Normally, to break the barrier, a monster would use almost the entirety of all seven souls. However, I couldn't use up that much energy from the monsters, so… I had to sacrifice the entire energy from the other six souls. They're gone." Asriel's voice is quiet. "I'm sorry, but with their souls completely destroyed by the barrier, those humans can't be revived. It's not like when you revived monsters. Our souls don't just vanish. They shatter, just like our bodies turn to dust."

" _THERE'S SOMETHING THERE, IN THE AIR. EVENTUALLY IT'LL FADE, BUT, UNTIL THE SOUL COMPLETELY FADES, YOU CAN STILL REVIVE THEM. HOWEVER, THE HUMAN SOULS HAVE NOTHING LEFT TO WORK WITH._ " Gaster adds. Nyssa looks at Gaster, then at Asriel.

"I'm sorry Nyssa. Those humans… I couldn't save them and all of the monsters too." Nyssa opens her mouth, but then she simply sighs and smiles at Asriel.

"Hey, it's okay. I guess something had to give, and those souls were that something."

"I just… I'm still surprised I'm here, in my real body." Asriel looks down at his hands. "I've been a flower, without a soul, for so long… When you brought the other monsters back from when I absorbed them, your power plus theirs pieced my soul back together. It was almost completely faded. If… If it had been much longer, I probably wouldn't have been able to be revived completely. Nyssa…" He looks at her. "You… you've given me my life back. I…" He gets teary eyed. "Even though I hurt everyone, even though I killed Sans, you still ended up saving me. Nyssa… I…"

"No, don't cry! I'll cry too, and I've done enough crying today!" Nyssa shouts as she feels the tears fill her eyes.

"I-I'm sorry." Asriel smiles as he wipes his tears away. "I… I'm just so grateful. You… I'm glad you came, Nyssa. You've saved everyone, more than once… Thank you."

"Hey, that's what friends are for, right?" Nyssa looks back at the sunrise. A few tears break past her defenses as she looks back at Asriel, then at the others. "I… have been saved by you all too. Guess that makes us even." She gives them all a big, cheesy grin.

"sure. if we're even then i don't have to get you a thank you present or anything." Nyssa frowns.

"Wait, present? I want presents!"

"nope, we're even, remember?" Sans says with a wink.

"Sans! If you're getting me a present then I want it!"

"look at the time. if we're moving out here then i guess i should help with the packing." Sans disappears, and Nyssa sighs, though she can't help smiling.

"I don't need a present anyways." She looks back at Papyrus, and he's looking back at the sunrise. "This… this is enough to make up for anything and everything."

"YOU KNOW, SANS IS RIGHT. IF WE HURRY AND FINISH THEN WE CAN MOVE RIGHT AWAY ONCE THE KING AND QUEEN GET BACK! LET'S GO!" Papyrus turns and runs back inside. Nyssa laughs as she, Gaster, and Asriel follow. They find Sans waiting in the throne room. While Asriel splits from the group, the others continue on their trek through the Underground, heading back to the house so they can prepare to leave to their new home, together.

* * *

The End

* * *

 _Thank you for joining me on this Undertale journey. This piece of Nyssa's story may be over, but it'll continue on in our hearts and minds. I hope you've enjoyed this ride as much as I have, and that you find your happy endings in your lives._

 _Lots of Love, Anjell._


	26. Chapter 26

Sunlight slips through the open window as Nyssa looks into a messy bedroom. Clothes are thrown about, and paint supplies have taken over a quarter of the room, opposite the bed.

"this was your room?" Nyssa glances back at Sans and Papyrus.

"Yeah… It looks like they just left everything when I disappeared." She walks in and picks up some of the clothes. "Well, I'll worry about getting everything washed and stuff after we get it back to the apartment."

"NYSSA, ARE YOU NOT GOING TO SPEAK WITH YOUR FAMILY? THEY SEEMED CONCERNED WHEN WE SHOWED UP." Nyssa doesn't look at Papyrus. Rather, she continues grabbing items off the floor and puts them on her bed.

"No… They were surprised, but… concerned isn't a good way of putting it."

"nyssa, are you gonna be alright? you've been putting off coming back here, and now…" Sans trails off.

"Sorry guys." Nyssa fakes a smile as she looks at the two skeletons. "I… I'm just having a hard time looking at my past, you know?" She looks back at her bed, then at her pillow. Slowly, Nyssa reaches for it. When she lifts the pillow up, she sees a piece of paper. She doesn't grab it though. Nyssa simply looks at it.

"NYSSA, WHY ARE YOU STARING AT THAT PAPER?" For a few moments, she doesn't respond. Then, slowly, Nyssa opens her mouth.

"Its… my suicide note. I wrote it before climbing the mountain. I figured, eventually, my family, or someone, would come in here and look around, and they'd find it… Guess no one really cared that much."

"nah, that's not true. well, we should probably hurry and grab the stuff you want to bring with." Sans looks back at Papyrus.

"OF COURSE." Papyrus turns and grabs some boxes that are sitting in the hall. He passes them in, and the three begin packing. As they do, a woman walks up and stands in the doorway. Nyssa glances at her, then she stops and looks at the woman.

"Nyssa…" The woman's voice is quiet. "Are you…" She glances at Sans and Papyrus. "A-are you sure you want to leave… again?"

"Yeah." Nyssa and the woman look at each other for a few moments, neither talking. Sans and Papyrus continue packing, though they glance at the two women. "Mom… I-I'm gonna be staying with my friends. I…" She looks at Sans and Papyrus, then she sighs and smiles as she looks back at her mother. "Maybe I'll… come visit. Okay?"

"O… Okay. Just, Nyssa… Nyssa, we… We thought…" She trails off.

"It's all in the past mom." Nyssa waves her mother's comments away. "Sorry, I gotta pack."

"R-right." Her mother turns and walks back the way she came. Nyssa looks down at her box.

"NYSSA, ARE YOU GOING TO BE ALRIGHT?" Papyrus reaches out and places a hand on Nyssa's shoulder. She puts her hand over his as she lets out a long sigh.

"Yeah." She smiles at Papyrus. "I'll be fine. It's… hard, but I'll be okay. Come on, lets hurry and finish up."

* * *

" _NYSSA, ARE YOU SURE YOU'RE FINE WITH SHARING AN APARTMENT WITH ME?_ " Nyssa, who is sitting on her new bed in her box filled room, looks at Gaster, who is standing in the doorway to her room.

"Yeah, it's fine." She smiles at him. "I mean, Sans and Papyrus are my family now, and so are you, so I really don't see a problem with sharing an apartment." She looks out her window.

" _WELL... IF YOU'RE FINE WITH IT THEN I'M GLAD. I'LL LEAVE YOU TO UNPACK._ " He turns and walks away, leaving Nyssa alone. She sighs and falls back onto the bed.

"I…" She shuts her eyes. "Well, it's not like there's any going back now." She gets to her feet and begins opening boxes. Slowly, Nyssa makes her way through them. Her room, which was mostly filled with boxes, a bed, and a dresser, suddenly becomes littered with clothes and books. The empty boxes are stacked up into a make-shift table, where paint related items are neatly laid out. When she finishes, Nyssa stands in her doorway and looks at the disaster she created. "…Yep. I'm never gonna clean this." She says with a laugh.

"cleaning is overrated." She jumps and spins around to see Sans standing outside her room. "hey, how's the unpacking going?" He glances in.

"Perfectly." Nyssa says as she crosses her arms.

"looks like it. heh." Sans looks at Nyssa, then he blushes a bit and looks away. "say, nyssa, do you wanna go for a walk or something?"

"Sure." She smiles. "We could go find a shop to get you a new jacket while we're out. I mean, it's not like it snows much around here or anything, but it can get pretty cold still." Sans smiles at her.

"sounds good." Nyssa follows Sans out of her room, and into a small living room with an attached kitchen. The floors are all wood. Down a short hallway is another couple of doors, but they head to an open door, which leads out of the apartment. When they walk out they see several other doors are open, and there are monsters standing in the hallway, in the apartment doors, talking and carrying boxes of their own. The two make their way down the long hallway, to some stairs. They head down two flights of them, passing a few monsters as they go, and then head out onto the street. The sun shines down on the pair as they make their way down the street. "so, uh, you know where you're going, right?" Sans glances at Nyssa.

"Yeah. I've done a lot of walking around town. It's pretty hard for me to get completely lost." As they walk, they pass apartments, homes, and a couple of small shops. The further they go though, the more shops they find, until finally there are no more homes. The humans walking on the street give them fearful looks as they avoid walking near Sans. Nyssa frowns as she sees a group of girls cross the street up ahead, all while looking at Sans. "Sans, I…"

"nys, listen, it's no big deal." She looks at him in surprise. "we all kind of expected this reaction. after all, it's been a long time since humans have seen monsters." Nyssa smiles.

"Well, at least you're handling it alright. I'm sure Pap is…" She's cut off as she hears screams. The two freeze for a moment, then they run. They follow the sound of shouting down the street and around the corner. There, they find Toriel and Asriel, surrounded by a group of men. They're dressed in mostly black and white, some with leather jackets, some with black boots, all looking rough.

"…eriously, this scum just thinks it can walk into our town and make us accept it?"

"Ridiculous." Nyssa glances at Sans, and she sees his eye is glowing.

"Sans, wait." She places a hand on his shoulder, and he glances at her before letting out a sigh. Nyssa smiles, then she walks towards the group. "Hey, what's the deal with picking on a mother and child?" The men look at Nyssa. "Well?" They start laughing, and one of the men steps away from the group, towards Nyssa.

"Listen, girly, you seriously think you can pick a fight with us? And why? Over a couple of monsters?" Nyssa glares at him.

"Trust me, a fight against you wouldn't be a problem. I'm warning you, leave my friends alone, or you're going to regret it." The guy's smile disappears. He glares at Nyssa for a few moments, then, slowly, it returns.

"You must be the brat that brought the monsters out here. Well, maybe we should show our gratitude to you." He reaches towards Nyssa, but suddenly the man is in the air.

"sorry buddy, but you don't get to touch her." Sans says with his usual smile, and his eye glowing. Nyssa looks back at the skeleton as he waves his hand back and forth, shaking the man. He then throws him into a few of the other guys, and his eyes return to normal. "tori, asriel, you two should probably head back to the apartments." Toriel and Asriel quickly make their way to Nyssa and Sans, but neither leave.

"Thank you, but we can't simply leave you here." Toriel says. The four face the group of angry men.

"Whatever. These guys just need to back off." Nyssa says. All eyes fall on Nyssa. "Got it, boys? Leave, now." The men glance behind Nyssa.

"Tch, whatever." They turn and leave. Nyssa looks back, and she smiles.

"Well, I suppose that'll be a problem for a little while." She says.

"Sadly, I believe you're right." Toriel sighs.

"Don't worry." Nyssa continues to smile. "It may be hard, but it'll turn out for the best. I believe that." The three monsters smile back at her.

"Yes, I believe you're right with that as well." Toriel places a hand on Asriel's shoulder as she looks down at him. "Come on Asriel. We should head home."

"Alright." Asriel nods, but then he looks at Nyssa. "Nyssa… You know, I can still never thank you enough for this."

"You pushed me to finally become a stronger person, so don't worry about thanking me. That change was enough." The group then says their goodbyes and parts ways. Sans and Nyssa continue on their way, heading further into the shops.

"you really have changed… it's… nice." Sans is quiet as he speaks.

"Th-thanks." Nyssa blushes as she puts her hands in her pocket. "So, uh, d-do you want the same style of jacket, or…"

"i guess i haven't thought too much about it. i'll probably just go for something like my old one."

"Alright. Well, there are some clothing shops along the road. We can check a couple of them out, and if they don't have what you're looking for then we can try for the mall."

"mall?" Nyssa nods.

"I guess you didn't really have a mall in the Underground. A mall is just a place where a whole bunch of stores are all put together in one building. It's usually got some other things too, but that's pretty much what it is." They turn and enter a shop, and inside they find the building has a lower level of light, and a lot of clothes. "This shop should have some good hoodies. I've come in here a couple times before."

"well, lead the way." They walk through the clothes and find their way to some jackets. The two begin sorting through the hoodies, looking for something for Sans.

"Hey, this one is cool." Nyssa pulls out a purple hoodie with a starlight design and shows it to Sans.

"purples not really my color. i'm more of a blue skeleton." She shakes her head and puts the jacket away. "most of the ones that look good don't have zippers. i kind of like the zipper thing."

"Well, what about…" Nyssa quickly pushes the clothes out of her way as she continues her search. "This one!" She pulls out a dark blue jacket with some white fluff around the edge of the hood. Sans smiles.

"hey, that's perfect! it's a lot like my old one." Nyssa hands the jacket to Sans and he tries it on. "fits perfect too. i like this one." He takes it off and looks at the price tag. "i have no idea if this is actually expensive or not. tori said she's gonna get some info and hold some basic classes to help us adjust, but we just got here, so…" He hands the jacket back to Nyssa and she looks at the tag as well.

"It's a bit… pricey." She smiles at Sans. "It's fine though. I had a job before, and as long as my family didn't mess with my bank account I should have more than enough to buy this. Come on." The two walk up to the counter, where a guy and a girl are chatting. "Hi, just this." She puts the jacket on the counter, but the two are focused on Sans.

"Is… Is that a…" The guy is the first to speak.

"you know, it's not polite to stare." Sans says.

"Woah! It talks!"

"You know, calling him an 'it' isn't the nicest thing. Nor is ignoring a customer when they want to buy something." Nyssa snaps.

"Sorry." He smiles at Nyssa, but glances at Sans. "That'll be 63.28." Nyssa reaches into her pocket and pulls out a wallet, then she hands a card over. The guy takes the card and runs it, then hands it back. "Would you like your receipt?"

"Yeah, that'd probably be good. We don't need a bag though." She grabs the jacket and hands it to Sans. He takes it and puts it on, then pulls the hood over his head. Nyssa giggles as she holds her hand out. The man puts a receipt in her hand, and the two start walking to the door.

"H-hey, a-are you really a skeleton?" The stop and turn back.

"well, i seem to be made of bones and magic, so i'm pretty sure i'm a skeleton." He says.

"That's… Pretty cool." The guy smiles, and Nyssa smiles as well. The girl doesn't though. She simply watches the interaction.

"Well, let's get heading home, Sans. Unless you wanted to go somewhere else?"

"well, i didn't have anything planned. i wouldn't mind walking with you for a little bit though." He hides his face in his hood as he speaks.

"Well, you did ask me on a walk earlier, I just turned it into a shopping event." They once again start walking. The two head outside and continue their walk. With the hood covering his face, and his hands in his pockets, fewer people notice Sans', and continue their days without worry. As Nyssa watches the change in reaction, she finds herself gritting her teeth.

"you know… maybe walks aren't the best thing." Sans quietly says. "i certainly can't let pap walk around by himself if thi…" Nyssa pulls his hood down. "h-hey, nys, what's up?"

"You know, these people shouldn't… I mean…" Nyssa stops walking and sighs. "Sans… They don't even know you, or Toriel, or… anyone. They just avoid you all for no real reason. Monsters… you aren't bad." She looks at the people on the street. Many of them have suddenly stopped, shocked by the sudden realization that one of the humans they thought they were walking by is, in fact, a skeleton. "None of you deserve to be treated to badly. I know you've all only just been introduced into a world where you were thought to be fairytales, but…"

"hey, you were scared when you first met me, right?" She looks back at Sans. "you told me about everything from your first time round with us. you were scared. we were scary. but you warmed up to us, right? just… give them time. give everyone time. you're happy with both worlds, but us monsters are warry of humans, and humans are freaked out by us." Once again she sighs, but then she smiles.

"Sorry. I just want everything to go well, and for everyone to be happy."

"me too." The two start walking again.

"Hey, Sans, uh… g-give me your hand." Sans looks at her. "J-just do it." He holds his hand out to her, and she grabs it, a blush in her cheeks.

"uh, n-nyssa…"

"J-just go with it, okay?" Sans blushes as well, but both of them smile as they continue on. They get more puzzled looks than before, but less people cross the street.

* * *

((( _I've listened to some of you guys, and decided to take this story a little further. I don't know when it'll end now. Haha, well, that's fine. I meant to end this to concentrate more on OverGround, but this story is just too much fun. Enjoy the ride, cause it's started again!)))_


	27. Chapter 27

Sans walks into his room to see Nyssa sitting on his bed, reading a book. He takes off his jacket and hangs it up on one of the bedposts, then he lies next to her and shuts his eyes.

"you know, you can't hide in my room forever."

"Watch me." She smirks, and he opens one eye.

"nys, you know you're gonna have to face those reporters at some point." She groans and shuts her book.

"I know, I know… Just… When a bunch of people suddenly show up at your door with cameras and mics its… overwhelming."

"you literally said you weren't home and shut the door on them." He shuts his eye as he laughs. "that was actually pretty funny." Nyssa glares at him.

"L-look, I'm not exactly used to this sort of thing. I know…" She sighs. "I know it'd be good for me to do interviews and talk about some of my experiences with you all, but it's kinda terrifying." Sans opens his eyes and looks at Nyssa. She's looking down at her book, fingers tracing the cover.

"hey…" He sits up. "don't worry about it. we've only been out here for a few days. no one expects you to suddenly jump back into society and get really involved or anything like that." She looks at Sans. "everything'll work out eventually. just relax, like me." Nyssa smirks.

"Yeah, like you." She shakes her head. "Sans, y…"

"SANS, NYSSA, THERE MAY BE A PROBLEM." Papyrus peaks into the room.

"what's up bro?"

"THE REPORTERS ARE BACK, AND THEY SEEM TO HAVE REALIZED NYSSA IS HIDING SOMEWHERE. THEY REALLY WANT TO INTERVIEW HER. THEY KEEP ASKING DAD WHERE SHE WENT."

"No." Nyssa groans. "I can't let them harass Gaster… Fine, fine, I'll go speak with the leaches." She mumbles. Sans and her get out of the bed and head to the hall. They find a single news crew is standing outside Nyssa's door, speaking with Gaster. However, he isn't talking. He's only speaking in hands, leaving the crew at a loss. Nyssa smirks. "Gaster, I got this." They look to see Nyssa, and he smiles at her.

" _IF YOU'RE SURE._ " Nyssa nods, and he walks back into his apartment, leaving the crew thoroughly confused.

"H-he could talk?" The woman in a dress suit looks at the now closed door, then at Nyssa.

"Yeah. He was trying to do me a favor and confuse you all, but I can't avoid you forever." She crosses her arms. "Right, I, uh, I'm not… I'm not sure what it is you people even want me to say."

"Oh! Oh, wait, hold on." She turns to the cameramen. "Hey, get rolling. We'll want everything recorded." The men fuss with the equipment a moment, then she turns back. "Right." She stands to the side of Nyssa, so she can look at both her, and the camera. "This is Channel 7's Vicky Talbi speaking. I'm here with the young woman who aided in freeing monsters, allowing them to return to society, miss Nyssa." Nyssa smiles nervously as she gives the camera an awkward wave. "Nyssa, how was it, suddenly finding yourself trapped underground with monsters?"

"W-well, I'll admit, at first it w-was scary, but…" She looks back at Sans and Papyrus, who are standing just outside their apartment, and she smiles. "The monsters were all kind." She looks back at the camera. "They took me in, and gave me a home… I became a part of their lives, their families." She pushes some hair out of her face. "Really, I… I'm very glad that I found them."

"Tell me, who are these… skeletons?" Vicky looks back at Sans and Papyrus.

"Oh, these are a couple of my closest friends. They're the ones in particular who gave me a home in the Underground. The taller one is Papyrus, and the shorter one is Sans." Sans and Papyrus wave at the camera.

"HELLO HUMANS. I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, LOOK FORWARD TO BEFRIENDING EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU."

"sup?" Nyssa giggles.

"W-wow… I have to admit, being in these temporary apartments, and seeing the many monsters here, it's quite overwhelming." Vicky looks at Nyssa. "Nyssa, from what we can see, you chose to continue living with these monsters rather than return to your old life."

"Uh, yeah…" Nyssa continues to smile, but it's obviously fake. "My life before… To be honest, that doesn't matter anymore. I went to Mount Ebott to get away from my past, and I found a future I wanted. I'm happy to be with my friends here."

"Do you truly believe humans and monsters can get along?"

"Of course!" Nyssa looks back at her friends, then at the reporter again. "They look different, and the magic they bring back to us humans is a bit strange, but they're caring, and have lives and hopes and dreams and skills and all of those other things that we would say make us human. They're a lot like us, and I believe we'll all find peace together."

"You sound so passionate about this. Well, let's all hope you're right. Back to you, Alice." Vicky stands there for a few moments, until finally the cameraman points the camera away. "Alright, that's it for this piece." She smiles at Nyssa. "Thanks for the interview. Listen, this was just a short thing, but I've been asked to invite you down to the studio tomorrow for a full, live broadcast. We'll have more questions, and probably allow some viewers to call in and speak with you. How does that sound?"

"Terrifying." Nyssa says as she runs her fingers through her hair. "But… I-I guess I can handle it. Uh, I don't…"

"Don't worry. We'll send someone to pick you up. Can you be ready by 5:30?"

"Probably."

"Great." Vicky smiles. "I won't be the one conducting the interview, but I'll probably be there to watch. Nyssa, you've really caused a lot of chaos by bringing these monsters up here, but…" She glances at Sans and Papyrus. "They… Have been quite nice, actually… I do hope things work out." Vicky walks to her crew and they begin packing their equipment. Nyssa lets out a long sigh as she turns back to Sans and Papyrus.

"you did great. say, do you want us to come along with you tomorrow?" She smiles at him.

"Yeah, actually. It'd be nice to have some company. This is really scary, going on camera. A friendly face would help a lot."

"WELL, I HAVE MADE PLANS FOR TOMORROW EVENING, SO I WON'T BE ABLE TO JOIN YOU. HOWEVER, DAD AND I WILL WATCH THE BROADCAST! IT'LL BE EXCITING! OH! THAT REMINDS ME! METTATON IS SUPPOSED TO BE ON A NEWS SHOW TONIGHT, BUT I DON'T REMEMBER WHICH CHANNEL!" Papyrus runs into the apartment, and Nyssa giggles.

"Well… Hopefully this'll all help smooth things over." Nyssa and Sans walk back into the apartment and head to the kitchen. There's a counter between the kitchen and the living room, and the two can see Papyrus flipping through channels on their TV. Nyssa gets a glass of water, then the two lean on the counter. Papyrus finally finds the channel he wants, and the three watch as Mettaton and an older man chat away.

* * *

Nyssa stands in the bathroom, looking at herself in a mirror. She's in a knee length blue dress with a black ribbon tied around her waist and into a bow on her front-left side. Her hair is pulled back into a ponytail, and she's wearing some light make-up.

" _NYSSA, ARE YOU ALRIGHT?_ " Gaster asks as he knocks on the door.

"I-I'll be fine. It's just an interview." She unlocks the door and walks out.

" _YOU LOOK LOVELY._ " He smiles, and she smiles back with a slight blush.

"Th-thanks." Gaster walks with her out into the hallway where Sans is leaning on the opposite wall, looking at his phone. He's wearing a tux with a tie, but he doesn't have the black jacket to go with it. When he looks up at Nyssa he blushes.

"w-wow… you, uh, y-you look nice." He stands upright and smiles at her.

"Th-thanks. Y-you too." Nyssa smiles back.

" _BEHAVE YOURSELVES AT THE INTERVIEW._ " Gaster laughs lightly.

"We will. See you later, Gaster." The two of them walk downstairs, neither saying a word. They head out onto the sidewalk, and it isn't long before a black car rolls up.

"think it's for us?"

"Nah." The driver gets out.

"Miss Nyssa, I'm from the station. Are you ready?"

"Nope, but since when has that ever stopped me?" The driver smiles slightly. He opens a door, and the two get in the car. He then gets back in his seat, and they head off. Sans and Nyssa look out the windows as they drive, taking in the sights.

"this place is pretty big, huh?"

"Yeah." She glances at Sans. "Sans… Thanks for coming with me." He looks at her.

"hey, no problem. i'm happy to help." They fall back into silence for the remainder of the drive. When they arrive at the three story building they walk inside and up to a receptionist sitting at a counter. Several people are walking around, talking with each other, on the phone, and looking at some papers.

"Uh, hi. I'm Nyssa, here for an interview." Nyssa quietly says. The receptionist looks at her with a warm smile.

"Welcome. Here, I'll call someone down to bring you up." She picks up a phone and punches in a few numbers. After a couple of seconds she talks again. "Hey, the interview for six is here… Alright, yeah, see you soon." She hangs up. "They'll be down in a moment. Feel free to have a seat while you wait." She motions towards from chairs lined against a wall, where a couple of other people are sitting. Sans and Nyssa walk to the chairs and sit down.

"pretty busy place." Sans notes as he looks around.

"Yeah…" Nyssa twiddles her thumbs. "It's, uh… totally not intimidating at all." She gives Sans a nervous smile. He sighs and places a hand over hers.

"nyssa, you're okay. i'm here for you." Nyssa sighs as well.

"I know, I know… I'm sorry." Sans pulls his hand back. "I… I'm just such a nervous wreck. Sorry."

"Nyssa?" They look up to see a man in a suit. "Follow me, please." They stand and follow the man into a back hallway, then up some stairs. "Are you excited?" He glances back at them as they walk into a large, mostly open floor filled with cameras, backgrounds, computers, and people.

"You could call it that." People stop to watch as the dressed up girl and skeleton walk past them.

"ever feel overdressed?"

"No, never." The two of them laugh quietly as they follow their escort back to a pleasant looking set with a crescent couch, a round oak coffee table, and several cameras.

"Here you are. You'll be interviewed by Alex Garmen. He'll be over in a few minutes, an when it hits six the interview will start."

"Thank you." Nyssa and Sans take a seat. They watch the people work, and some of the people continue to watch them as well.

"welp, this is gonna be an experience… wonder if i should go wait by the cameras. it's not my interview." Sans starts to stand back up.

"Don't you dare leave me." Nyssa grabs Sans' hand and pulls him back down.

"o-okay, calm down." Sans says with a snicker. "i'm not gonna leave you, just joking." Nyssa sighs.

"S-sorry. Just… D-don't go, okay?" Sans smiles and squeezes her hand.

"hey, i said i wouldn't, so i won't." Nyssa smiles.

"Thanks… This… You really are making this a lot easier." She takes in a deep breath, but when she tries to move her right hand she realizes her fingers are tangled up with Sans'. Both of them blush, but neither of them pull their hands away. They simply sit there, quietly waiting for Alex to arrive.


	28. Chapter 28

A man with slicked back black hair and a suit and tie walks up to Nyssa and Sans.

"Hello there. Sorry for the wait. My name is Alex Garmen, and I'll be doing the interview with you."

"It's nice to meet you." Nyssa says as Alex sits down a couple seats away from her. He turns his body just enough to face her, while still looking at where the cameras are.

"We'll be going live soon. I'll start with an introduction, then I have a few questions for you. After that, we'll have a break, then a few more questions, another break, then we'll open up the phones to the public. Of course, this isn't all completely set in stone. We'll play things by ear. This is meant to span the entire hour, but we have some things set up in case we run a little shorter or longer."

"O-okay…" Nyssa feels her smile waning.

"Hey, it'll be alright." Alex smiles. "I'm a friend in this. Trust me."

"Right." She looks at Sans.

"Sorry, I know her name, but not yours." Alex looks at Sans as well.

"i'm sans the skeleton, a friend of nyssa's. don't worry. once you start recording i'll get out of the way."

"No, no!" Alex waves his hands. "This'll be great! Please, stay. I'm sure the viewers will love having you here."

"you sure?" Alex nods.

"Very. Now…" He's cut off as a few people walk up to the cameras. "Well, it's about time to start. Are you two ready?"

"No."

"sure." Alex smiles.

"Alright. Just follow my lead with this and you two will do just fine." The group is then silent as the crew begins to work. A few glasses of water are set on the table for each of them, and the cameramen get themselves positioned. Nyssa and Sans watch as the different people swiftly get them ready to go. Then, a woman stands in between a couple of the cameras. She holds her hand up, and Alex nods. She then starts dropping her fingers as she counts.

"Five, four, three…" She goes silent for the last two. The lights on the cameras shine, and Nyssa feels her heart stop a moment.

"Hello, and thank you for joining me tonight. I'm Alex Garmen, and today my guests on the Hot Hour are Nyssa Tear and Sans the skeleton. For those who aren't familiar, Nyssa is the human who aided our new monster neighbors in their escape from an Underground home and reunited them with humanity. Nyssa, Sans, it's good to have both of you here."

"Thank you, Alex. It's good to be here." Nyssa says. Her hands are trembling slightly, but she's keeping a smile on her face.

"yeah. i'm glad i'm able to join nyssa on this show. i'd be lost if i didn't have her. not sure what all this show is." Nyssa giggles as she looks at Sans, and Alex chuckles.

"Well, I can already tell this is going to be a fun day." He glances down at some papers on the table. "Now, Nyssa, I have a few questions for you."

"Alright. Shoot."

"First, everyone wants to know how you found the monsters."

"That's…" Nyssa's smile disappears, and Sans frowns as well. He squeezes her hand, and she glances at him. "I… was very depressed, actually. I'd been that way for a while, and then a few different things happened at once that made me decide to end it all. I was scared though, so… I went with something… Different." She glances at Sans again, then she takes in a deep breath and slowly lets it out.

"It's okay, take your time." Alex assures. Nyssa smiles at him.

"Thank you… I-I decided to climb Mount Ebott. It was supposedly cursed, and people who went up there never came back, so… I went there." She gives a quick, light laugh. "I walked for a while, and ended up, half asleep, stumbling around some strange plants that led to a small fissure. I looked down, and in my exhaustion, and with everything on my mind, I just… fell."

"I'm so sorry… To think you went up there, alone, for such a terrible reason…" Nyssa smiles at Alex.

"Well, in the end, it worked out. I guess bad things can be used for good…" Nyssa looks at Sans, and he smiles at her. "I woke up on a bed of flowers. They were so thick that they broke me fall. Turns out it wasn't all that high anyways. What happened next, well…" She glances at the cameras before looking back at Alex. "It's a really long and strange story if I go into all the detail. To sum it up, Sans found me, and, though at first he didn't trust me, he ended up being the monster to take me into his home."

"Really? So, Sans is the first monster you met?" Alex looks at Sans.

"yeah, i guess i am." He looks at Alex. "nyssa came at a weird time. we… actually had another human down there, but… they didn't make it out alive. the kid was attacking monsters, but when nyssa showed up she confronted them, and the kid panicked. they attacked nyssa, but they screwed up, and ended up killing themselves instead."

"O-oh my. That's…" Alex seems lost for words.

"It's a strange story. To be honest, it was pretty terrifying. I'd… rather leave it at that." She runs her fingers over her throat. "I don't need to relive their attacks."

"Of course. I think the viewers get the picture with just that. Let's move on." Nyssa nods and grabs her glass of water, taking a sip. Sans continues to hold her hand tightly, keeping her from being visibly shaky. "Nyssa, given how you came to find the monsters, what's changed your mind since then? You don't seem to be…"

"Suicidal?" Nyssa sighs. "It's okay to say it. Dancing around the subject… I've found it doesn't actually help me." She squeezes Sans' hand. "I spent a lot of energy helping the monsters who were hurt by the human who had fallen down before me. During that time, Sans and his brother, Papyrus, they took care of me. Over time I just… I came to see a side of life I wasn't familiar with. The two of them… They became my family, and they showed me that it's worth fighting through the pain. The other monsters, too. They all… Well, they were wary of me, given what had just happened, but they all warmed up to me eventually."

"she made a difference down there… we all were grateful that she came to us, even if it was for such a bad reason." Alex looks from Sans, to Nyssa, to Sans, then back to Nyssa. He also glances between them, as their hands.

"How long were you down there for?"

"Well, I left home back on the 17th last month, so… I suppose it was about a month and a half."

"So, in a month you built a life down there?"

"Yes." Nyssa nods. "Sans and Papyrus even made me my own room, and got me some painting supplies so I could have something more to do during the day."

"You paint?" Nyssa blushes.

"Ah, w-well, yeah." She smiles nervously. "I-I like painting, that is. I'm not the greatest."

"she's great. she painted a lot of the really beautiful parts of the underground and gave them to different monsters as gifts." Nyssa glares at Sans, but he closes one eye as he continues to smile at her.

"I'm sure we'd all like to see these paintings. They sound quite spectacular." Nyssa blushes more.

"Th-they aren't th-that great. S-Sans is just being nice."

"You two seem to get along quite well."

"heh, i guess we do. nyssa just fit right into the family. my bro absolutely adores he, and so does my dad. she's pretty much my sister at this point."

"I see…" Alex simply looks at the two of them for a few moments, then he smiles at the cameras. "Well, with how deep these questions turned out to be, I think we could all use a break. We'll return to the questions after this commercial break."

"Cut, good." The woman between the cameras says. "We've got a few minutes. I'll let you know when we're about to jump back in."

"Thanks, Alice." Nyssa lets out a long sigh as she leans back into the couch. Sans reaches to the table and grabs Nyssa's water.

"here." She sits up properly and takes it.

"Thanks." She smiles as she takes a sip. "This is… I-I think I'll survive the hour… Maybe."

"You're doing great." Alex takes a sip from his water. "Just keep going, and you'll get through this without a problem."

"Alright, thank you." Sans gets his water and joins the two others in having a quick drink.

"You know, I half expected that water to just go through you." Alex says with a chuckle.

"heh, not quite. to be honest, the first time i had something human to eat or drink i was a bit concerned, since your food doesn't have magic in it like ours. but us skeletons have really powerful magic in our tongues tha…"

"You have a tongue?" Nyssa and Alex say in unison.

"uh… y-yeah…" Sans smiles nervously. "guess it's not weird for you not to know…"

"I've lived with you and didn't realize. So, Pap and Gaster too?" Sans nods. "I… O-okay, I kinda need to see this." Sans shakes his head.

"first you freak out about me opening my mouth, now about me tongue?" He sighs, then opens his mouth and sticks out a slightly glowing blue tongue. When he pulls it back in he returns to talking as he always does. He doesn't even notice the blush on Nyssa's face. "of course, paps' and dad's are different colors. a skeleton's tongue is the only means we have to absorb nutrients, since we don't have all the same squishy parts all of you have, so it's mostly an extreme concentration of magic. it'll be the same color as our particular magic. mines blue, but paps' is orange, and dad's is purple."

"I-I didn't… realize." Nyssa looks away and drinks some more of her water.

"Th-that's really interesting, actually. Monsters, magic… It's really hard to wrap our minds around this. I'm looking forward to all the other things I'll get to see with you monsters around." Alex grabs some papers off the table and flips through them. "Well, we did take an early break, so the schedule I told you won't quite be accurate anymore. It should be fine though. Wouldn't be the first time things didn't go as planned." He chuckles as he sets the papers back down. "Are you two still feeling alright?"

"Yeah." They both nod.

"Good. Alice will let us know when we're starting up again." It isn't long before Alice, who has been talking with a cameraman, turns to the three people.

"Right, getting back in 10." Alex quickly tugs on his jacket, straightening it out a bit. Alice once again counts down with her fingers. When all 10 are down, Alex begins.

"Welcome back. For those of you just joining us, I'm talking today with Nyssa, who helped bring monsters back to humans, and Sans the skeleton, a monster friend of hers. Sans, Nyssa, those first few questions brought up some tough topics. I'm glad you two are doing fine though."

"Th-thanks. At this point, I'm pretty used to talking about what happened before I met the monsters."

"Well, why don't we move on to the next question? Now, Sans, I'm curious. Do monsters have similar relationships to us humans? Wife or husband, kids, dating, all of that?"

"well, monsters and humans did use to live together. we have a lot of similar traditions. we do have the whole family thing, with marriage and all those bits. nyssa has shown us some of your social media websites, and we even have our own version of that too."

"Really?" Alex looks surprised. "That is absolutely fascinating. To think monsters would have such similarities…"

"I definitely had a hard time believing some of this stuff. I mean, when I fell down, at first I thought I was just knocked out and dreaming." Nyssa says with a quick laugh. "But one of my other friends, Alphys, she got me set up on some of those sites, and even gave me a cellphone to use and get on them with. It was quite sweet of her."

"Do you still have this phone?"

"Ah, no…" Nyssa sighs. "Unfortunately, when the barrier was broken, my phone was in my pocket. I got knocked about a bit, and ended up breaking it."

"That's too bad. We could have given one of your other friends a call." Alex chuckles. "Well, I've got quite a few more questions to get through before we open things up to the viewers. Let's continue."


	29. Chapter 29

Nyssa and Sans are standing while Alex and Alice speak. They look at the cameramen as they get themselves ready for the return from the break.

"Alright, do you two have the earpieces in?" Alice asks as she looks at them.

"yep." Nyssa giggles as she looks at the taped-on ear piece on Sans. "fits like a glove."

"Sorry. We aren't exactly prepared for skeletons." Alice smiles. "Well, when we start up you'll be hearing all the call-ins. Alex will ask for each one first though. We don't know who these people are, so some of these questions might get a bit… difficult. We do try and listen to callers before sending them to you three, but if someone really makes you uncomfortable or you don't have an answer just let us know and we'll move on."

"Thank you." Nyssa reaches up and stretches before she and Sans sit back down. Alice returns to her spot and holds her hands up. Soon, she starts dropping her fingers, until finally they're all down.

"Thank you for joining us. We're going to open up the lines to the viewers now. Sans and Nyssa are prepared to listen to what you have to say and respond to what you'd like to ask, so go ahead and call in at the number below. We've already got our first caller, though. Hello, you're live with Alex."

" _Hi. I was calling to say, Nyssa, you are so brave. Depression is so hard to admit to, and… You're really cool. Like, I can't believe how awesome you are_." Nyssa blushes.

"Uh, th-thank you. I-I… I'm not th-that great." Nyssa is quiet.

"That was sweet." Alex says with a chuckle. "How about our next caller?"

" _Yeah, I was wondering… Do monsters eat people?_ " Sans seems caught off guard, as the question makes him cough a few times.

"r-really? no, we don't eat humans. that'd be way too gross. it'd be like trying to eat one of our friends, and i don't know any monster that's interested in cannibalism like that."

" _Nyssa, did you get hurt down there?_ "

"W-well, I did get hurt a bit. I mean, I was basically in a really elaborate cave system, so it's hard to avoid getting hurt when walking around as often as I did."

" _Why should we trust monsters? I mean, all of our stories with monsters show you as being evil and killers._ "

"I'm here, aren't I?" Nyssa responds. "The monsters aren't mean or evil. They're just like us humans. Give them a chance, and I bet you'll find some great friends among them."

" _Say, uh… I was wondering… Does Nyssa have a boyfriend?_ " Nyssa's face turns bright red.

"Uh… Wh-what? Wh-wh… N-no, I… I-I don't…" She struggles to speak, and Sans can't help smiling as he watches her.

"no, nyssa told us that she's never had a boyfriend before. she's really shy, so it'd probably have been hard for her to admit her feelings about anyone she might have liked. it's pretty cute."

"S-Sans! Sh-shut up!" Nyssa squeaks. Sans laughs, and Alex does too.

"Well, you two are already having so much fun with your callers." He comments.

"F-fun isn't how I'd describe it." Nyssa mutters.

"Can we have the next caller?"

" _YES, THE CALLER NOW IS THE GREAT PAPYRUS. HELLO, NYSSA, SANS!_ "

"P-Papyrus?" Nyssa stutters.

"hey, paps!"

" _I WAS THUROUGHLY ENJOYING SEEING YOU TWO ON THE TV. I'VE GOT LOTS OF PEOPLE IN DAD'S APARTMENT. WE'RE ALLWATCHING TOGETHER._ "

" _Hurry up and ask, already!_ "

" _Go on, Papyrus!_ "

" _I, UH, HAVE BEEN GIVEN A QUESTION FROM SOME OF OUR FRIENDS. THEY WERE WONDERING WHEN SANS IS GOING TO ASK NYSSA OUT ON A DATE._ " Sans and Nyssa both blush.

"uh, p-pap, that's… uh, c-can we have the next caller?" Sans looks to Alex, but the man looks stunned.

"Oh, yes. We'll go ahead and move on to the next caller." He glances at Alice, and she nods. "Hello, welcome to the show."

" _I made it through! I can't believe it! Ah, uh, I wanted to ask Sans if he was single. He's such a cute little skeleton…_ " Sans reaches back for his hood, but realizes he doesn't have it.

"i-i, uh, y… yes? i-i mean, uh, i'm… y-yeah, i'm s-single."

"Now who's being cute?" Nyssa snickers as Sans glares at her.

" _Oh, I'm on? Great! Say, as I'm watching the show I'm hearing all these questions about love and stuff. Do Nyssa and Sans have something going on between them?_ "

"N-no! We… We don't, I mean…" Nyssa glances down between her and Sans. While they aren't holding hands anymore, their hands are still touching. "W-we're just friends. Really..."

" _Darling, I think you need to be honest with yourself. Now, tell the audience, would you smooch a skeleton?_ "

"mettaton?" Sans frowns, but Nyssa only finds herself putting her hands over her face. She can feel the heat seeping through her skin.

"Wh-why are you people so interested in this?" She says through her hands.

" _Listen, little beauty, we all have been watching you and Sans throughout your time in the Underground, and on this show. In front of the camera you two have such a powerful dynamic, we can't help but believe you to be something a bit more than just plain, old friends._ "

"W-well qu-quit it!" She almost slaps herself with how fast she throws her hands down into her lap. "E-even if, we, we…" She glares down at the floor. "S-Sans, he w-wouldn't want…" She glances at Sans. He's looking down as well. Slowly, he lets out a sigh, then she smiles at Nyssa. His face still has a bit of blue in it.

"nyssa… i, well, i wasn't planning on asking so soon, but… these questions are kind of pushing it, so…" He scratches his face as he looks away for a moment. Nyssa can't look away from him though. He shuts his eyes, and when he opens them he's looking at Nyssa once again. "n-nys, i… i-i was wondering if, maybe you'd… y-you'd like to, you know, be my… g-girlfriend?" Everyone is silent. A few tears fill Nyssa's eyes. She quickly wraps her arms around Sans as she cries, but with a smile on her face.

"Y-you stupid skeleton! This is the worst time to ask s-something like th-that!" She hugs him tightly. Sans hugs her back.

"heh, sorry." Nyssa pulls away, still smiling as the tears run down her face. Her whole body seems to be trembling.

"I… I would be s-so happy to be y-your girlfriend." Sans eyes seem to light up.

"wait, really?" Nyssa nods. "i… w-well… heh… i-i'm one lucky skeleton." He simply smiles. Alex and Alice exchange glances.

"W-well, with such a heartwarming moment, I think we need to give everyone here a short break. We'll be back in a few minutes." Alex smiles at the cameras.

"Alright, they're off." Alice says. Alex lets out a sigh as he looks at Nyssa and Sans. Nyssa is still shaking, but Sans is holding her hands and whispering to her.

"calm down. calm. i'm right here, no need to shake."

"I-it's hard n-not to." Nyssa laughs quietly. "I-I'm so… I-I was so frustrated, and now I'm s-so happy." Sans reaches up and cups her cheek with his left hand.

"c-come on. if you keep crying i-i'll end up crying too. relax."

"I-I'm trying. I swear." Alex smiles.

"You two… I wasn't quite expecting that, but for the first half of this you were holding hands, so I thought something strange might happen." A man quickly walks up to Nyssa and Sans with a box of tissues. Nyssa gladly takes them and starts attempting to dry her face. Sans takes another and dabs around her chin, catching some of the tears that had already made it down her cheeks. "You two seem like such a great couple. I would have believed it if someone told me you were together when you came in."

"thanks. heh, guess it was meant to be, huh?" Nyssa sniffles as she nods. "better?"

"Y-yeah. Thanks." She looks at Alex. "S-sorry. I… I'm just overwhelmed by all of this."

"No, it's alright. You aren't the first guest to cry." Alex chuckles. "However, I don't think I've ever had someone ask someone else out on the show, so this is a first. Thing is, the viewers that are waiting to call in and get on have all seen that. I'm going to guess that quite a few of your calls are going to be related to your relationship. Can you handle that?"

"Y-yeah. I'll try to keep it together this time." Nyssa says with a nod.

"Don't worry. I doubt that the viewers are going to be upset with you for getting emotional." Alex says with a laugh. Nyssa grabs her water and quickly finishes the glass.

"W-well, let's get this over with."

* * *

Sans and Nyssa walk down the stairs, heading to the first floor of the news station. Their fingers are laced together.

"never thought people would use such colorful language on a show like this." Sans says as he glances at Nyssa. Her face still has a slight bit of color to it.

"I-I really think people need to mind their own business…" She mumbles. Sans smiles at her.

"heh, you get rattled so easily. they're all fans of us now. i bet that metal mascot is gonna be pretty jealous." They stop walking when a woman steps in front of them.

"Um, I… I think you two should leave through a different exit." She says.

"What? Why?" Nyssa glances behind the woman, towards the front doors of the building. She can see people outside of them.

"Well, there are…" The woman looks back at the doors, then at the two of them. "There are people who have been gathering since the interview started. They aren't exactly fans of Sans, and they don't seem to be fans of your new relationship either. Congrats, by the way." She smiles at them. "Sorry it's about to be hit real hard by these people."

"It's not your fault. Besides…" Nyssa looks at the people. "They aren't really a block between us. Just an annoyance between us and home. We'll be fine." The woman steps to the side, allowing them to continue to the doors.

"nys, you sure you wanna go out there? that's a pretty big crowd. we probably won't be able to get to the car with how they're all bunched together."

"Hey, I've got an idea. I've been practicing with my shields since we've left, and I should be able to push them apart."

"i think they'll notice a giant, bright green wall. i thought you wanted to keep your abilities a secret."

"Who said I needed a big wall?" Nyssa smirks. "I just need to move some people. Trust me." They walk out the front doors, and they're almost forced back inside by the angry shouts.

"Get out!"

"Monsters don't belong!"

"We don't need such ugly things around our children!" A few people have signs, but most are simply standing there, shouting at Sans and Nyssa. Sans watches as Nyssa gently motions to the side with her free hand. Suddenly, the people in front of them seem to spread apart. They start walking into the crowd, and the people continue to move to either side. Sans looks at the people closest to him, and he can see a host of fine, green lines pressing against their bodies, pushing them back. When he looks up at Nyssa he sees a proud smirk on her face.

"Freak! You're disgusting!"

"Go die!"

"Burn in hell!" The shouting doesn't stop, even after the two reach the street and are quickly ushered into their waiting car. The driver quickly takes off, heading down the road.

"they were pleasant." Sans says.

"People are… well…" Nyssa runs her fingers through her hair. "Monsters genuinely were a lot kinder than humans… Unfortunately, you get those types of people, who are just so filled with hate that all they want is to spread it. They think they're right, and anyone who disagrees doesn't even deserve to exist…" She sighs. "I think I need to lay down for a few years after we get home." Sans smiles.

"i second that." It isn't long before the two arrive back at their apartments. They quickly get inside and head up the stairs. When they reach their rooms the two simply stand there. "one of these doors would allow us to relax. the other probably has everyone and their uncle behind it."

"Question is, which door is which?" Sans reaches out to his door, and when he opens it he finds no one there. "Okay, that one."

"heh. lucky gue…" He's cut off as Nyssa's door is thrown open. Papyrus is standing there, tears in his eyes.

"YOU TWO ARE HOME! I'M SO HAPPY!" He shouts as he pulls both of them into a hug, lifting them both off the ground as he does.

"Y-yeah. G-good to see you t-too, Paps." He lets go of them, and they can see there are more people behind him in the apartment. "So much for taking a nap."

"it was a great dream while it lasted." They walk into the crowded apartment. All around them they hear congratulations and cheers. Very different sounds from what they were hearing earlier.

" _SANS, NYSSA, WE WERE ALL QUITE EXCITED BY WHAT HAPPENED._ " Gaster says with a smile.

"Th-thanks. I was pretty excited too." Nyssa gives a quick, nervous laugh.

"Didn't expect you to have such guts!" Undyne says as she smacks Sans on the back, making him wince as he stumbles forward.

"w-well, i figured it was now or never. had to ask her before one of those callers did." Nyssa smiles as she watches Sans receive praise from his friends. She stands to the side, awaiting her turn for harassment.

" _THANK YOU, NYSSA._ " She looks up at Gaster. He's watching Sans as well. " _YOU'VE BROUGHT SO MUCH HAPPINESS TO THESE MONSTERS... TO MY FAMILY... MY SONS... I'M GLAD YOU CAME TO US. WE ARE ALL SO VERY GLAD YOU CAME._ " He smiles down at Nyssa, and she smiles back at him.

"Thanks, Gaster."

" _PERHAPS YOU SHOULD START CALLING ME DAD NOW._ " Nyssa blushes and opens her mouth to speak, but she finds herself yanked away from Gaster, and into the boisterous group of monsters.


	30. Chapter 30

As people shuffle in and out of a store, Sans stands in front of a wall of paint supplies. He looks at his phone, then at the paints.

"DID YOU FIND SOMETHING YET?" He looks to his right to see Papyrus walking up to him with a shopping cart. It has a few layers of different pastas in it. Sans smiles, but shakes his head.

"not yet. i'm not really a paint guy, so i don't know what'd be good to get her. she's got the basics, but…" He sighs. "well, at least you had a good time shopping." He sticks his hands in his pockets.

"I CERTAINLY DID. NYSSA WAS RIGHT. THERE ARE A LOT OF DIFFERENT PASTAS IN THESE STORES, AND I'M GOING TO TRY COOKING WITH ALL OF THEM!" The two start walking. "SAY, SANS… HAVE YOU HEARD ANYTHING MORE ABOUT THAT BIG CONFERENCE THING ASGORE MENTIONED?" Sans glances at Papyrus.

"not really. nyssa's been really worked up over not knowing more about what's happening. all we can do is wait." As they walk through the store, people whisper. Papyrus hums as he goes along, not noticing the strange looks. None are lost on Sans though. The two walk up to a register and Papyrus reaches in his cart to pull out his pasta boxes.

"Uh, no." The young man at the register crosses his arms. "Get out."

"what?" Sans glares at the man.

"I'm not serving some freaks. Get out of here. Besides, why do skeletons need food? You're just a sick joke."

"buddy, you really…" Papyrus places his hand on Sans' shoulder. Sans looks up at his brother.

"HUMAN, WE MERELY WISH TO PURCHASE THIS DELICIOUS PASTA. I KNOW WE MONSTERS ALL LOOK A BIT STRANGE, BUT I ASSURE YOU, WE HAVE THE SAME SORT OF NEEDS AND LIVES AS YOU HUMANS. WE DO NOT WISH FOR ANY CONFLICTS. WE SIMPLY WISH FOR HAPPY AND PEACEFUL LIVES."

"p-pap…" Sans looks back at the man, but his expression hasn't changed.

"I'm no…"

"Greg!" The man jumps and turns to see a young woman in a blue vest. Her short black hair is pulled back in a ponytail. "You really want to get sent home, don't you?"

"H-Heather, l-look, I'm, they…" He stumbles over his words as the woman glares at him.

"If you want to keep your job, then actually do it. Understood?"

"Come on! They're monsters!" Greg shouts. "Why are we serving these things? They aren't people!" The woman grits her teeth.

"Go home, Greg."

"What? How c…"

"Greg!" He jumps. The man glances at the skeletons, then grumbles as he punches a few numbers into his register before walking away. The woman sighs as she looks at the two of them. "Look, I'm sorry about him. People are… annoying. Here, I'll grab this register and ring you two up myself." She walks to the next register and the brothers follow her. "My name is Heather. I'm a supervisor here."

"HELLO, HEATHER. I'M PAPYRUS, AND THIS IS MY BROTHER, SANS." Heather giggles as Papyrus begins handing her boxes.

"Nice to meet you two. I have so much fun every time I see monsters in here. You guys are all so cool." As she rings up the boxes she continues to look at Sans and Papyrus rather than the numbers that pop up onto her screen. "Sans, you're the one on the show with Nyssa, right? You two are so cute together!" Sans blushes slightly and looks away.

"uh, th-thanks. she's the cute one though. heh. i'm just a bag of bones."

"I think you're both pretty adorable." Heather winks at Sans. He quickly pulls his hood up to hide his face, making her giggle. She returns to looking at Papyrus. "Look, there are a lot of us that are really excited about you monsters. Seriously, it's great, having you guys here. Don't get down because of people like Greg."

"OF COURSE! I BELIEVE THAT WE CAN ALL BE FRIENDS. AFTER ALL, EVEN IF SOME PEOPLE ACT NASTY, I KNOW THEY CAN BE GOOD. ALL THEY HAVE TO DO IS TRY. NO ONE IS TRULY BAD OR EVIL." Heather looks surprised. After a few moments she smiles.

"That's… sweet." She finally looks at her screen. "Alright, looks like your total is 53.73."

"pap, nyssa is gonna murder you for spending so much." Sans says with a snicker as Papyrus pulls a card out of his hoodie's pocket. He swipes it through the reader, then punches in a few numbers.

"NO WAY! THIS IS OUR FOOD AFTER ALL! WE'VE GOT TO HAVE A VARIETY." Sans shakes his head. The receipt prints, and Heather hands it to Papyrus.

"Well, I hope to see you boys again sometime."

"THANK YOU. IT WAS NICE MEETING YOU. TAKE CARE!" Papyrus puts his bagged spaghetti into his cart, and the two walk to the doors. "SEE SANS, SOME OF THESE HUMANS ARE TRULY NICE PEOPLE. I KNOW WE'LL ALL GET ALONG SOON ENOUGH." They put their cart away and take the bags out. Sans carries one bag, while Papyrus carriers the other six.

"i hope you're right, bro."

"OF COURSE I'M RIGHT! ANYONE WHO WOULD PUT SUCH SPLENDED PASTA ON SALE LIKE THESE HUMANS DID IS SURELY GOOD. THEY ARE SPREADING THE WONDERFUL LOVE OF PASTA TO ALL BY MAKING IT EVEN EASIER TO BUY A FANTASTIC VARIETY!" Sans chuckles.

"i guess you're right. you're always right. that's just one of the reasons you're such a cool guy."

"YES, I AM COOL, AREN'T I?" Sans pulls his hood back down.

"well, when we get back i think i'm gonna take a nap. i'm bone tired."

"SANS! WHY MUST YOU CONTINUE WITH THESE PUNS? THEY AREN'T PUNNY ANYMORE!" Sans laughs. "OH YES, THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAS ONLY THE GREATEST OF JOKES."

"you really are the coolest brother." Sans says through his laughter. It isn't long before the two arrive back at their apartment. They drop off the pasta, and Papyrus begins organizing the boxes before putting them away in the cabinets. Meanwhile, Sans heads next door. He knocks, but no one answers. After a minute he knocks again. This time someone knocks from the other side. "i'm pretty sure that's not how the joke goes." Nyssa opens the door.

"You sure? I thought we were just speaking the language of doors."

"door language? that's a new one." Sans walks inside. "where's dad?"

"Asgore came by and asked for him. I think they're talking about the meeting with the world leaders." The two take a seat on the couch. Sans sits normal, but Nyssa sits with her body turned and one of her legs up on the seats so she's looking at Sans. "So, you and Pap have a good time at the store?"

"it was… interesting. people are still staring, and there are some idiots around, but… some of them have been really nice. papyrus has certainly been enjoying himself. heh. he really loved all the pasta he found in the store." Nyssa giggles.

"I'm sure he did. I'm just glad they were having a sale. I figured that'd be the best time to let him visit the store." Sans shuts his eyes.

"well, i think i could use a nap. papyrus is probably struggling to pick out what he wants to use first for dinner tonight, so i'm sure we've got some time."

"Alright. I was actually gonna do some painting when you showed up, so I'll let you rest." Nyssa stands and stretches. Sans opens one eye and looks at her.

"giving me the brush off, huh? i get it. it paints me to say this, but i think you should go." Nyssa laughs as she walks to her room.

"Go to sleep already!" He chuckles as he shuts his eye again. Slowly, Sans drifts off to sleep.


	31. Chapter 31

" _SANS?_ " Sans opens his eyes to see Gaster standing next to him.

"oh, hey pops." He sits up and stretches, then looks around the room. Asgore and Toriel are there as well. "guests?"

"We came to speak with Nyssa. Given what's happened as of late, you might be interested as well." Asgore says.

"alright. well, last i knew, nyssa was in her room doing some painting." Sans stands and walks to Nyssa's room, then knocks on the door.

"Come in." He opens the door to see Nyssa with her back to him, working on a piece, with brushes and jars floating around her. Faint green glows surround the items.

"w-woah. nys?" Nyssa glances back at him. "is this the practice you were talking about?"

"Sorta." She lets go of her brush, but it only falls a couple inches before it's caught by a tiny shield. With a few quick motions from her hands, all the items gently float over to her desk and into their places without spilling a single drop. She turns and smiles at Sans. "I've been trying a lot of stuff, but using shields to move things is one of my favorites. It's super helpful."

"that… was pretty cool." He smiles. "you know, i've really been wondering how your magic works, given humans haven't had magic for so long. i thought maybe you would run out since there isn't a high magic concentration in the air to keep your power fueled."

"To be honest, I was wondering the same thing. But, given everything I've been doing, it looks like I'm good."

"If your magic is still strong, then that means when you encountered such an extreme level of magic, it unlocked the magic in your soul." The two look to see Asgore. "It's interesting that that's what happened. Perhaps other humans have magic potential that could be unlocked."

"Maybe. Though, I'm not really keen on people finding out about my magic." Nyssa makes a quick motion with her hand, and her phone lifts off her desk and flies to her hand, surrounded by her green shield. When she grabs it the shield disappears. "The moment anyone finds out, I'll become a target for all sorts of harassment. People will expect me to heal everyone in existence, revive the dead, solve all sorts of problems…" She sighs. "I mean, I want to help, but I can't do all of that."

"I understand. For now, no one is speaking about your abilities. As far as humanity knows, you are still an ordinary human. Now, I did need to speak with you. Would you come out to the living room?"

"Yeah." The three walk out to the living room, Nyssa quickly checking her phone for any messages as she walks before putting it in her pocket.

"Now… Toriel and I have spoken with many of the leaders of this world." Asgore starts as he looks at the group. "They have also had meetings amongst themselves. The end result has been quite favorable."

"Oh? What happened?" Nyssa looks from Asgore to Toriel.

"My child, they have agreed to a few things. First, monsters and humans are to be equals. They have also spoken with us regarding laws and customs, and we have found very few problems." Toriel smiles as she speaks. "There are, of course, many other details. However, they wish for the official signing of all agreements to be made into a proper ceremony, given its importance to the world."

"They have asked, however, for two things. First, they would like to speak with you. Second, they would like for you to join the ceremony and sign the agreement as well, since you are an integral part of the connection between monsters and humans." Nyssa stands there, simply looking at the monsters in front of her. She doesn't react. "Of course, other monsters will be there, such as Gaster. Also, should you wish, you can join, Sans."

"that's quite the honor. if nyssa wants me there, i'll go. otherwise, i think i'd rather just chill with my bro at home." He looks at Nyssa. "nys? gonna say something sometime soon?"

"I-I…" She bites her lip. "It's… I can't say how terrifying this is. I mean, it's no battle with an overpowered, blood thirsty monster, but…" She smiles, and the group smile back. "I mean, o-of course I'd be honored to be a part of all of that."

"That's wonderful to hear." Toriel quietly says. "I'm glad you're on board with this. You've certainly been a big help to all of us, time and time again."

"Th-thanks… So, um, what now?" Nyssa looks from Toriel to Asgore.

"For now, we'll go and speak with them again. When they're ready to speak with you, we'll come get you." Asgore says.

"Alright. Sounds good, I guess." Asgore pats Nyssa on the head, then he and Toriel take their leave. Nyssa sighs as she sits on the arm of the couch.

" _ARE YOU FEELING ALRIGHT, NYSSA? YOU'VE CERTAINLY HAD A LOT ASKED OF YOU LATELY._ " Gaster places a hand on Nyssa's shoulder. She smiles up at him.

"Yeah. I almost feel like I'm getting used to being the middle of all these things."

"well, you still have us at your side, so don't be too worried." Sans says as he sits on the couch. "heh, i bet pap would go nuts if he got to be a part of some big ceremony."

"Well, maybe you both could be a part of it." Nyssa smiles. "I mean, I doubt anyone would get upset if I asked to have both of you there, and Gaster is going to be there too." She looks at Gaster. "It'll be a family event."

"that sounds great, actually. let's wait to tell papyrus until we find out for sure, though. don't want him getting his hopes up just to have them shot down." Nyssa nods.

"Alright."

" _YOU TWO... YOU'RE BOTH SO CUTE TOGETHER._ " Nyssa and Sans both blush.

"i-i'm gonna go back to my apartment." Sans quickly says as he stands and heads for the door. Gaster chuckles, and Nyssa smiles.

"See ya later, then." Sans stops and looks back at her.

"yeah. see ya." He walks out, leaving Nyssa and Gaster.

" _IT'S BEEN QUITE FUN, HAVING YOU AROUND._ " Gaster says as he sits on the couch.

"I've been having fun, being around." Nyssa giggles. "I certainly wouldn't want my life to have turned out any other way."

* * *

Nyssa shifts uncomfortably in her seat as she sits in front of a computer. The camera sitting on top of it captures her every movement. On the screen she sees several men and a few women, all dressed in nice suits.

"Nyssa, we're glad that you're willing to speak with us." One of the men says.

"W-well, this is certainly important. How could I say no?"

"Still, having the chance to speak with the human who brought monsters to us is very important. Now, tell us, what do you really think about coexistence between our kinds? Certainly, we've all seen your interview, but…" Nyssa sighs.

"If you're thinking I put on a show or something, that's not the case." She smiles. "I genuinely love these monsters, and they've taken such good care of me. I know that some people aren't taking too well to them, but others have fallen in love with them… I whole heartedly believe that we can all live together in harmony."

"So," a woman begins to speak. "Do you think it's a good idea for monsters to be completely integrated into society? Certainly, we could separate them and…"

"What would be the point?" Nyssa questions. "Perhaps, if you gave them enough land to qualify as a country, they could have an easier time with humans coming to understand their customs, but they really aren't all that different to begin with. Besides, I doubt any country would be willing to give up any significant piece of itself for them."

"You're right. That's why we already threw out that idea." One of the men says as he glares at his screen. "Lie already knows that."

"It's a possibility." The woman retorts.

"I think monsters need to be allowed to participate in human society." Nyssa says. "They're all adapting very quickly, as it is. I see no point in taking them away from here for now. As time goes on, they'll pick up work and move into their own homes and live their lives. Certainly, I know Asgore's family will end up leaving the apartments, as will the skeleton family. The world out here will just become a part of their lives, and they'll become a part of ours."

"These are monsters, though. What's to say that they won't attack us in the future?"

"If they were going to simply kill humans for no reason, I'd be dead, wouldn't I?" Nyssa feels her composure starting to waver. "Monsters aren't evil. You can't talk like they are, and you can't let the people you care for hear you speak like that. They need to be given a fair chance. Just look at how they've been so far. The only incidents reported have been ones started by humans, and even then there were no serious injuries. They have a lot of self-control and patience. Humans need to be more trusting and understand of them."

"You are quite passionate about this." Another man says. He speaks slowly, english obviously not being his first language.

"I am. These monsters are my family, now. I want them to get a fair shot at life."

"Well, Nyssa, this was good to hear. We've already decided on what we want to do and how we'd like to go about it, but… It seemed only right that we got to meet you and hear what you have to say." The first man smiles. "We will continue to speak with Asgore and Toriel with regards to the ceremony and the details of the agreement everyone will be signing. It'll be quite the event, seeing as most of the world leaders will be attending, or have a representative come in their place. I look forward to meeting you in person."

"Th-thank you. I'm looking forward to it as well." Nyssa smiles.

"Goodbye for now, then." The video cuts off, and Nyssa lets out a long sigh.

"This is way too stressful." She stands and walks out of the empty room. "I can't believe that some of them are still so close minded though." She mutters as she walks out into the living room to see Asgore, Toriel, Asriel, and Gaster.

"That was quite short." Asgore comments.

"Yeah. I think it went alright though." Nyssa smiles at them. "Hopefully everything'll keep going the way it has been. It seems like it'll all be okay if that happens."

"Lets hope so. The monsters have been so happy since we've returned to the surface. The thought of that joy being lost…" Asgore shakes his head. "Thank you, Nyssa. You've been very helpful and supportive. We appreciate all that you've done for us."

"No, please." Nyssa waves her hands. "I'm just trying to be there for my friends. It's not something…"

"It is big, and we can't express our gratitude enough." Toriel interjects. "Nyssa… We owe you so much… It would be impossible to ever repay you for what you've done for us."

"Really, it's… I don't need you to repay anything." She looks out a window, then back at them. "You're all important to me, so this is the least I can do. After all, what are friends for?" The four smile at her, and she smiles back.


	32. Chapter 32

Nyssa grits her teeth as she watches people with picket signs scream at her from a corner on the street, not even a block away from her home. She continues her walk, a couple of bags of groceries in hand.

"You brought this on us!"

"Burn in hell for your sick life!"

"You're just as much of a monster as those things!" Nyssa doesn't look back, and the shouts quickly become nothing more than background noise for her. She heads up to her apartment, then begins putting groceries away.

" _WELCOME HOME, NYSSA._ " Gaster walks out of his room, holding some papers. Nyssa glances at him, but continues to put away her food.

"Thanks. Say, I bought some stuff for burgers tonight. Sound good?"

" _THAT SOUNDS FINE. I DID WANT TO TELL YOU THAT THE CEREMONY IS BEING PREPARED. IT WON'T BE LONG BEFORE LEADERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD GATHER TO SIGN ANGETHER. ARE YOU PREPARED?_ "

"I'm rarely prepared for anything. Doesn't stop me, though." She smiles at Gaster. "Honestly, I'm just hoping this'll help to stop these people from trying to harass us. Probably not, but… I can dream." She looks down at the hamburger buns in her hands.

" _YES, WE CAN HOPE. THOUGH... I DON'T HAVE A GOOD FEELING ABOUT THIS._ "

"I don't, either…" Nyssa sighs. "I… really hope nothing goes wrong."

* * *

Nyssa and Sans run through a hospital, bouncing off walls, using the momentum to turn corners and continue running. They head up a couple flights of stairs, unwilling to wait for the elevators. They then make their way past people as they run down a hallway, until finally they slide to a stop in front of a room. When they walk in, they see Papyrus sitting on a bed while Gaster and a doctor speak together.

"Papyrus!"

"pap!" The two run to Papyrus, and he smiles at them.

"WOWWIE. I DON'T THINK SANS HAS EVER MOVED SO FAST BEFORE. YOU TWO GOT HERE SO QUICKLY."

"Of course we did! Are you okay, Pap? A…" Nyssa reaches up and puts her fingers on a crack in the side of Papyrus' skull. "D-does it hurt?"

"I-I'LL BE FINE. WHAT ABOUT THAT HUMAN, THOUGH? IS HE OKAY? I HOPE I DIDN'T HURT ANYONE."

"don't worry. i'll hurt them for you."

"Sans!" Nyssa glares at Sans, then she smiles at Papyrus. "Everyone is fine, Pap. The man that attacked you was checked over before the police took him, and he has no injuries. He was a little freaked out by the wall of bones, but not hurt."

"OH, GOOD. I'M GLAD EVERYONE IS OKAY. NOW, I JUST WISH HE HADN'T SWUNG SO HARD." Nyssa crosses her arms as she looks over at Gaster and the doctor.

"Well, there isn't much more we can do here. As far as healing monsters goes… We just don't know anything about it." The doctor looks at Papyrus, then at Nyssa and Sans. "I could have him stay here for a day or two, just to ensure he gets some rest, but…"

"I THINK IT'D BE BEST IF PAPYRUS WENT HOME. THIS HOSPITAL ISN'T ABLE TO HELP MUCH, SO I THINK WE SHOULDN'T WASTE THEIR TIME."

"Yeah. We should probably get him home." Papyrus hops off his bed.

"Alright. I wish there was more we could do, but we just aren't equipped to care for magical creatures. Certainly, I'm at a loss for how to care for magic skeletons."

"That's fine. We can care for him at home. We just need to get him checked out, and…"

"I'LL BE STAYING HERE FOR A LITTLE WHILE LONGER, SO I'LL TAKE CARE OF ANY PAPERS THAT THEY NEED. PAPYRUS, GO AHEAD AND GET READY. NYSSA AND SANS WILL TAKE YOU HOME."

"That means we can wheel you out in a chair." Nyssa smirks.

"WHEEL ME OUT?" Nyssa looks at the doctor, and he smiles at her.

"Yes!" She runs out of the room, and when she returns she has a wheelchair. "Sit in here." Papyrus sits down, then Nyssa starts running, pushing him with her.

"Don't run!" The doctor shouts.

"hey! wait for me!" Sans runs after them.

"THIS IS GREAT! WE MUST GET ONE OF THESE!" Papyrus shouts with a laugh. Suddenly the two feel heavy, and they stop moving forward. Nyssa glances back to see Sans, hand held out, eye glowing. He makes a quick couple of motions, and the two lift off the ground and gently float back to him. The others in the hallway watch in shock.

"you two really need to calm down. come on now, the elevator is this way." He starts walking, pulling the two of them with him. Nyssa leans forward on Papyrus' chair, smirking as she watches Sans walk.

"You're no fun. Wheelchairs are great for playing around, and after how panicked we were, I think having some fun would be a great idea."

"not running over sick people and doctors is also a great idea." Sans glances at them. "you two are such trouble."

"I'm pretty sure that's my line." Nyssa giggles.

"WELL, THIS IS STILL FUN! I NEVER USED TO SEE SANS USE HIS ABILITIES." Papyrus looks up and back at Nyssa. She kisses his forehead, making him blush and instantly look forward again.

"well, i guess i was always too lazy before." When they reach the elevators he finally sets Nyssa and Papyrus down. Papyrus presses the down button, and it isn't long before one of the doors open. They walk in, and Papyrus presses the button for the main floor. Once the doors close, Nyssa leans back against the wall.

"When we get home I'll fix you up, Pap. Sorry you have to wait."

"NO, I UNDERSTAND. IT ISN'T RIGHT FOR US TO REVEAL YOUR POWERS YET. BESIDES, IT ISN'T TOO BAD. JUST A SMALL SCRATCH ON THE GREAT PAPYRUS!" Sans chuckles.

"you're too cool, bro."

* * *

Once again, Nyssa finds herself listening to the angry chants of anti-monster groups as she walks down a street with Sans.

"i don't think they ever leave. do they sleep?" Sans questions.

"I really don't think they do. Seriously, you wanna see something scary then look at protesters. They can be terrifying." Nyssa sighs. "As long as we don't get more violent ones, everything should be fine."

"if another one decks my brother then they're gonna have a very bad time."

"Calm down, Sans." Nyssa grabs his hand and squeezes it. "If we overreact, especially before monsters are officially accepted by the world governments, then things can go very wrong for everyone. This time, monsters won't be simply sealed away. Humans don't have magic like that anymore."

"i know… just, pap doesn't deserve that treatment. none of the monsters do. yesterday, shyren got pushed around, before that pap was punched, tori has been harassed every time she goes to the store…" He sighs. "it's hard to not care."

"I never said that we should stop caring. We just have to make sure we are very careful about what we do and how we do it. If monster seriously hurt some humans…" Nyssa looks at the crowd shouting at her. "They could get what they want." The two stop at a corner and wait to cross the street. "Well, the big day is coming up. Tori told me that they're already setting up the building where the papers will be signed and everything."

"the sooner it comes, the better." Sans looks up at the sky. "nys… once everything is settled… do you wanna stay in the city?"

"Hm? Why?" Nyssa looks at Sans. "Do you want to leave?"

"heh, i guess i kinda do. just… pap and i have never been big on city life. we grew up in a lab, away from other monsters, and then we moved to snowdin, so… i think a home a bit further away sounds nice." Nyssa smiles. The crosswalk changes, and the two continue on their way.

"That… it does sound nice. I think a home in a smaller town, or at least away from all of this…" She looks back at the protesters. "I'd like a nice home like that… I think Pap and Gaster would like that too."

"it'd be a big family move. of course, moving is a lot of work. i might need to nap for a few days beforehand." Nyssa giggles, and Sans chuckles.

"Well, once everything is settled, we'll figure things out."


End file.
